| Imants Kalniņš (born 26 May 1941 in Riga, Latvian SSR) is a Latvian composer, musician and politician. Having studied classical and choral music, he has written six symphonies, several operas (including the first rock opera in the USSR, Ei, jūs tur! (English: Hey, you there!)), oratorios, cantatas, choir songs, a lot of movie and theater music. However, he is generally best known for his rock songs and is to be considered the first composer of intellectual rock music in Latvia.
Furthermore, he served as a member of the 5th, 7th, 8th, and 9th sitting of the Saeima, the parliament of Latvia, from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1998 through 2010, representing the For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK party.
In 2021, Kalniņš received the Great Music Award. |
