Lenna Kuurmaa
Encyclopedia
Lenna Kuurmaa is an Estonian singer-songwriter
and actress. She is a member of the girl group Vanilla Ninja
, but after the band's hiatus since 2009, has started work as a solo-artist. She released her debut album Lenna
in June 2010.
in Tallinn Music School under teacher Urvo Uibokand. She received vocal training from Ester Lepa and Ludmilla Issakova 1997–2002. In 2002 she took part of televised singing contest Fizz Superstar, where she made it to the quarter-finals. In the same year she, together with 3 other girls, formed the rock band Vanilla Ninja
. After Vanilla Ninja's hiatus in 2009, Lenna Kuurmaa started working as a solo-musician with the artist-name Lenna. In June 2010, she released her debut album Lenna under Mortimer Snerd. All the songs were written together with and produced by Vaiko Eplik
, who also owns the record label. She performed with her new band at the 2010 Shanghai EXPO
.
and its national preselection contests with varying success.
projects Kuningas ja mina (The King and I
) and Helisev muusika (The Sound of Music
). In 2007, Lenna Kuurmaa was chosen by the audience of Raadio 2 to be a singer in the Unistuste Bänd (Dream Band), a supergroup composed of popular Estonian musicians for a one-time performance at Raadio 2 Hit of the Year award gala.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
and actress. She is a member of the girl group Vanilla Ninja
Vanilla Ninja
Vanilla Ninja is a three-piece Estonian girl band which has enjoyed chart success in a number of countries across Europe, especially in Estonia, Germany and Austria....
, but after the band's hiatus since 2009, has started work as a solo-artist. She released her debut album Lenna
Lenna (album)
Lenna is Estonian singer Lenna Kuurmaa's self-titled debut studio album, released by Mortimer Snerd on 18 May 2010.- Track listing :# "Mida sa teed"# "Musta pori näkku"# "Kogu tõde Jüriööst"# "Rapunzel"# "Tigedad liblikad"# "Kotkasilm"...
in June 2010.
Musical career
From 1990 to 2002, she was a member of the ETV Lasteekraani Muusikastuudio and performed together with the choir in many festivals internationally (in Italy, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Israel, the United Kingdom, Spain, USA and Russia). From 2000 to 2006 she studied violinViolin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
in Tallinn Music School under teacher Urvo Uibokand. She received vocal training from Ester Lepa and Ludmilla Issakova 1997–2002. In 2002 she took part of televised singing contest Fizz Superstar, where she made it to the quarter-finals. In the same year she, together with 3 other girls, formed the rock band Vanilla Ninja
Vanilla Ninja
Vanilla Ninja is a three-piece Estonian girl band which has enjoyed chart success in a number of countries across Europe, especially in Estonia, Germany and Austria....
. After Vanilla Ninja's hiatus in 2009, Lenna Kuurmaa started working as a solo-musician with the artist-name Lenna. In June 2010, she released her debut album Lenna under Mortimer Snerd. All the songs were written together with and produced by Vaiko Eplik
Vaiko Eplik
Vaiko Eplik is an independent Estonian pop-composer, producer, singer and multi-instrumentalist.Vaiko Eplik was born into a music-loving family. Vaiko studied music at the Tallinn Music School, specialising in pop-jazz singing and also studied the guitar, which he now teaches...
, who also owns the record label. She performed with her new band at the 2010 Shanghai EXPO
Expo 2010
Expo 2010, officially Expo 2010 Shanghai China was held on both banks of the Huangpu River in the city of Shanghai, China, from May 1 to October 31, 2010. It was a major World Expo in the tradition of international fairs and expositions, the first since 1992...
.
Eurovision Song Contest
Lenna Kuurmaa has taken part in the Eurovision Song ContestEurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
and its national preselection contests with varying success.
- In 2003, with Vanilla Ninja, the song "Club Kung-Fu" was placed at the last position by an international jury at the national preselection contest EurolaulEurolaulEurolaul was an annual televised competition to select a song to represent Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest made by the Estonian Public Television Service ETV. For many years the competition differed from the national selections of most other countries in that the outcome was solely...
, even while having a strong popular support. - Again together with Vanilla Ninja, she represented SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
with the song "Cool VibesCool Vibes"Cool Vibes" was the Swiss entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, sung by Estonian girl band Vanilla Ninja. The song was composed by David Brandes and "Jane Tempest" , and was written by Bernd Meinunger, under the pseudonym "John O'Flynn"....
" in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005Eurovision Song Contest 2005The Eurovision Song Contest 2005 was the 50th Eurovision Song Contest, which was held at the Palace of Sports, Kiev, Ukraine. The winner was Greece's My Number One, written by Christos Dantis and Natalia Germanou and performed by Swedish-born Greek singer Elena Paparizou, who scored 230 points,...
in KievKievKiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, where they finished 8th. - In 2007, Vanilla Ninja participated in Eurolaul 2007 with the song "Birds of Peace", but did not make it to the finals.
- In 2010, Lenna Kuurmaa participated as a solo artist at the national contest Eesti Laul 2010 with the song "Rapunzel", which was co-arranged by Vaiko EplikVaiko EplikVaiko Eplik is an independent Estonian pop-composer, producer, singer and multi-instrumentalist.Vaiko Eplik was born into a music-loving family. Vaiko studied music at the Tallinn Music School, specialising in pop-jazz singing and also studied the guitar, which he now teaches...
. The song finished second.
Acting
Kuurmaa played the second lead role of Maya in the year 2007 Estonian film Kuhu põgenevad hinged (Where Souls Go) and Angela in the Estonian soap opera Kodu keset Linna, also in 2007. Since 2008, Kuurmaa has taken part in NO99 theatre's play Pericles, Prince of Tyre|Pericles as a guest-actress. In 2010, she was given a role of an Estonian Security Police investigator in the crime-drama series Kelgukoerad. She has stated that she has no interest in pursuing professional acting education.Other activities
Kuurmaa has also worked in television, for example being the host for the song contest Laulukarussell in 2006. She has also hosted programs in the Sky Plus radio since 2007. Kuurmaa is a member of Estonian Performers' Association (EEL) and Estonian Authors' Society (EAÜ). She has been involved in the musical theatreMusical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
projects Kuningas ja mina (The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
) and Helisev muusika (The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
). In 2007, Lenna Kuurmaa was chosen by the audience of Raadio 2 to be a singer in the Unistuste Bänd (Dream Band), a supergroup composed of popular Estonian musicians for a one-time performance at Raadio 2 Hit of the Year award gala.
Singles
- "Sellel ööl" (Violina feat. Lenna Kuurmaa) # 20 EST
- "Musta pori näkku" (Lenna Kuurmaa & Mihkel Raud)
- "Mida sa teed"
- "Õnnelaul"