Els Aarne

Elze Janovna Paemurru, pseudonymously known as Els Aarne, was an Estonian composer, pianist and pedagogue, primarily during the Soviet Union.

Life and career

Elze Janovna Paemurru was born as on 30 March 1917 in Makiivka, Russian Empire ; her pseudonym was Els Aarne. Her father was the scientist . She studied at the Tallinn Conservatory, Tallinn, graduating as a music teacher in 1939 after instruction from Gustav Ernesaks, in 1942 as pianist with Artur Lemba and in 1946 as composer under Heino Eller.
Aarne lectured at the Tallinn Conservatory on music theory from 1944 to 1974. Aarne married the horn player ; they had two sons, the cellist and politician and Mait Paemurru. She died on 14 June 1995 in Tallinn.
Els was known, among other things, as a chamber music composer ; in addition, she wrote two symphonies.