Surgit Dorpatum (Dorpat/Tartu rises) for SSAA chorus was commissioned by the Chamber Choir of the University of Tartu (Estonia) to honor 70 years of the Academic Women's Choir of the University of Tartu (TÜAN).

For this commission the choir chose as a text academic and folk poems in Latin and Ol Swedish, dating from the University's founding by Swedish King Gustav II Adolf in the mid 1600s. This was an intellectual golden age for Tartu/Dorpat.

Three poems were selected. The first two, in Latin: a celebratory description of Dorpat written by student Andreas Berg, and a somber reflection on humankind's relation to the Earth, written by professor Georg Mancelius. The third poem, in Old Swedish and in two parts, is a wedding poem written by an unknown person, initials "G.K.G."

Special thanks to Andrus Rehemaa for Latin translations, to Sara Ekstrand for help in translating Old Swedish to modern Swedish and English, and to Mari Valverde for help in preparing a phonetic pronunciation guide. 

"Surgit Dorpatum" is available from Svensk Musik.

IV. Hinden Talar

Musician, writer, educator, composer, tea enthusiast.

Coast Salish land.

Matthew Peterson (b. 1984) writes music that explores frontiers of sound and expression. He has composed over sixty works commissioned and performed by orchestras, choirs, opera companies, chamber ensembles, and soloists around the world. He lives in Dalarna, Sweden.

IV. Hinden Talar

composer Matthew Peterson