Aleksander Läte
Aleksander Läte (12 January 1860, in Pikasilla, Aakre Parish, Kreis Dorpat – 8 September 1948, in Tartu) was an Estonian composer, conductor and music critic. He is also known as the first Estonian professional music critic.
Aleksander Läte
Theodor John · Tartumaa Muuseum, TaM F 107 · Public domain
- Born
- January 12, 1860
- Birthplace
- Pikasilla, Estonia
- Died
- September 8, 1948 (88)
- Place of death
- Tartu, Estonia
- Nationality
- Russian Empire · Estonia · Soviet Union
- Occupation
- composer · journalist · choir director · conductor · teacher · piano maker
- Education
- Cimze seminary
- Honours
- Estonian Red Cross Order Third Class
- Languages
- Estonian
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Aleksander Läte (12 January 1860, in Pikasilla, Aakre Parish, Kreis Dorpat – 8 September 1948, in Tartu) was an Estonian composer, conductor and music critic. He is also known as the first Estonian professional music critic.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Aleksander Läte (1860–1948) was a choir director, composer and conductor, among other activities, of Estonian and Russian nationality. The choir director was born in Pikasilla and died in Tartu. Aleksander Läte was educated at Cimze seminary.
Languages used include Estonian. Honours include Estonian Red Cross Order Third Class.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Aleksander Läte. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q2640801 · wikipedia · Aleksander Läte
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Born — January 12, 1860 • Birthplace — Pikasilla, Estonia • Died — September 8, 1948 (88) • Place of death — Tartu, Estonia
Biography
Biography
In 1895, he started his education at Dresden Conservatory and graduated it in choir composition speciality. On the initiative of Läte, the first Estonian symphony orchestra was founded in 1900 in Tartu. In 1900, Läte moved to Tartu, where there were more opportunities to practice music. In 1908, he was forced to withdraw from practical music work due to illness, but continued to work as a composer. In addition to composing, he wrote various scientific articles, was a music reviewer for Postimehe for a long time. Aleksander Läte can be considered the first Estonian professional music critic. Since 1932, he led the piano factory Sprenk-Läte, located in Tartu. Since 1945, he was a member of Estonian Composers' Union. He is buried in Rõngu cemetery. His grave is recognized as a cultural monument. His brother was the piano master Eugen Sprenk-Läte (1871–1932), who ran the J. Moritz piano factory in Tartu, but was later a business manager. He founded his own piano workshop in Tartu in 1926, where he made pianos. Aleksander Läte continued his brother's work after his death.
Works
Works
• Five Cantatas • Kalevala (overture) (1901) • Eesti tants (for symphony orchestra, 1904) • Tempo di mazurka (for symphony orchestra, 1904)
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Pikasilla.
Birth place
Tartu.
Death place
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 19 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Music memorabilia
42,438 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Aleksandar SarievskiPerson
- Aleksander GurilyovPerson
- Aleksander KolkowskiPerson
- Aleksander LasońPerson
- Aleksander MichałowskiPerson
- Aleksandër PeçiPerson
- Aleksander ThomsonPerson
- Aleksander VinterPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Aleksander Läte?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.