Skip to main content

Book Lust Series presents Šmidchens & ‘The Power of Song’

February 7, 2014

Guntis Šmidchens, the head of the Baltic Studies program at UW, will launch his just-published book, The Power of Song, at the Nordic Heritage Museum Tuesday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.

The Power of Song shows how the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania confronted a military superpower and achieved independence in the Baltic “singing revolution.” When attacked by Soviet soldiers in public displays of violent force, singing Balts maintained faith in nonviolent political action. More than 110 choral, rock, and folk songs are translated and interpreted in poetic, cultural, and historical context.

The Power of SongThe Power of Song serves not only as the quintessential study of what constitutes the heart of the remarkable and inspiring movements of the Baltic people, it will stand as a distinct contribution to the study of civil resistance movements overall.” -Peter Ackerman, founding chair of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict and co-author of the A Force More Powerful.

Nordic and Baltic Book Lust Series Presents Guntis Šmidchens
Tuesday, February 11, 2014 
Nordic Heritage Museum
3014 NW 67th Street, Seattle, WA 98117
7:00 p.m.