Hardi Volmer says luck and connections shape careers

Estonian singer, film director and artist Hardi Volmer says luck and the people he meets have had a major effect on his life and career. He made the comments on Vikerraadio’s programme Päevatee, ERR reports.

Volmer said he felt fate had treated him kindly, with the right people appearing at the right moments. “You can be a genius, but if you don’t have luck and connections, there’s nothing you can do,” he said.

He described performing with the band Singer Vinger as both repetitive and rewarding. “The show is more or less the same, but there’s a perverse pleasure and satisfaction in putting on essentially the same costume for 40 years,” he said. Volmer added that he was the only band member who completely changed his appearance on stage with a costume.

Volmer said he had once neglected to change out of sweaty clothes after performances. He said a health problem began troubling him about 15 years ago after he got onto a cold bus while sweaty, and that it had developed into chronic inflammation. He now has to attend regular check-ups. He also said he had a “sporting interest” in seeing how long audiences would put up with him.

His mother was a visual artist who spent most of her career designing shop windows. Volmer said her income was meagre and that he initially decided against entering the arts. But he and a schoolmate, Villu, went to entrance exams for drama school after doing school theatre. They admired Juhan Viiding, Volmer recalled, but said that “fate or God put a hand in the way.”

Volmer’s childhood, early teenage years and period as a troublemaker are tied to Pärnu. His father, Omar Volmer, was a longtime director of the Pärnu Museum. Hardi said he sometimes joined his father on excavations, where they brushed out what were probably pottery fragments.

Volmer said he had been very extroverted as a child and young man, and often tried to take the lead. Over time, he said, that need faded.

He also served in parliament. As a freelancer, he was able to accept an invitation from Eiki Nestor. Volmer said his parliamentary salary matched the combined income from his other work, including the band, the television show Pehmed ja karvased, teaching and films in progress.

Volmer said language was very important for a small nation and that he could see it gradually deteriorating.