01:27:00|Canada|Directed by Kalli Paakspuu

Germany disbands their radio choirs for their war effort and Estonian composer and conductor Roman Toi gets a rare opportunity to introduce Estonian music to the world.He organizes a choir of exiled opera singers in Poland and broadcasts news and music performed by the exiled Estonian musicians through the iron curtain to their war torn and occupied homeland. Based on Roman Toi’s (2007)autobiography “”Kaunimad laulud pühendad sull”(”Most beautiful songs I dedicate to you””) featuring rarely heard archival broadcast recordings by Estonia’s eminent musicians. VeljoTormis’s “”Curse upon Iron””is sung byGrammy winning Estonian Philharmonica Chamber Choir conducted by Tõnu Kaljuste.

For five decades then Estonian-Canadian Maestro Roman Toi composed and conducted choral works and toured a Singing Revolution worldwide to restore freedom and democracy to the Republic of Estonia.

The film follows Roman Toi’s life through his music and historical events starting from the early 1900’s, through Estonian Independence, World War II and then the refugee years in Germany featuring incredible 16mm footage,photography and archival broadcast recordings. Adapted from Roman Toi’s autobiography with broadcast recordings of Roman Toi’s music performed by his choirs and eminent Estonian musicians to the socially engaged photography of early photo journalist Karl Hintser who follows the Estonian musicians’ escape to Danzig and to Germany’s Displaced Persons camps. American Julien Bryan’s photography of prewar daily life in Poland, Soviet Union, featuring Nazi Germany’s assault on modern art at the popular and the infamous Entartete Kunst [Degenerate Art] exhibition in Munich in1937.