Duo Ruut

Far removed from the madness of our times, beyond all the commercial hype, Ann-Lisett Rebane and Katariina Kivi have found a clearing in the darkness. With the help of centuries-old runo songs – a form of oral poetry from the Baltic–Finnish cultural sphere – the Estonian duo evoke the beauty of nature and our place within it. The gaze then turns to the sky, where weather and human emotions are in constant exchange, inseparably connected to us. Just as our ancestors were shaped by and dependent on the whims of the elements, the songs of Duo Ruut reflect a certain devotion and stoic acceptance of the inevitable. With the kannel – an Estonian zither – as well as dual vocals and a few other instruments, their debut album, ‘Tuule sõnad’ (2019), is a minimalist work full of magic and artistic motifs. This year, saw the release of Duo Ruut’s long-awaited second album, ‘Ilmateade’ (2025), which proved to be nothing less than a modern classic of Estonian folk music, an inner sanctuary for all those who are restless in these inhospitable times.