Lauri Lest

Photo: Liis Roden

An orchestra made up of household appliances and furniture – a gang of objects that have fallen into the status of trash, now trying to extend their lifespan by a few more days through making music. The performance features everything from electro, IDM, post-rock, industrial, ambient, and minimalism to bursts of symphonic drama. All of this accompanied by a strangely cozy light show.

Members of the orchestra: Toaster, Washing Machine, Tray with Cutlery, Nightstand, Watering Can, Sink, Closet, Electric Stove, Microwave Oven, Bar Counter and Film Reel Can + 22 animated stage and household lights.

Concert duration: ca 40′

Premiered at The Garage of Paavli Kultuurivabrik, Tallinn, 1 November 2025.

Installation, music and light show by Lauri Lest
Idea by Villem Varik (Paavli Kultuurivabrik)
Co-produced with Paavli Kultuurivabrik and Damn.Loud Agency
Supported by Estonian Authors’ Society (EAÜ)

Special thanks to Kertu Lorents, Liis Kippar, Jürgen Aas, Ben Raybone, Raul Keller, Maria Mölder and Sirp, Aleksander Metsamärt and Klassikaraadio, Marko Reikop and Ringvaade (ERR), Evert Palmets, Liis Roden, Kaido Kirikmäe, Rada7 and everyone who came to the shows and helped spread the word!

“Electronic musician Lauri Lest — whose expression gives no clue as to whether his endeavors are a refined joke at the audience’s expense or if he has in fact become a medium channeling the spirit world through a gas stove — continues, in yet another form, to animate furniture, household appliances, and kitchenware with vibration speakers. The result lies somewhere between chamber theatre and a haunted house at a funfair. The speaker elements that activate the acoustic properties of the objects enable the electromagnetic transmission of sound directly into the items themselves, making them ring, rattle, and resonate. This process most vividly brings out each object’s natural resonance frequency, giving it a distinctive tone while also creating an atmosphere that is both mysterious and ghostly.” – wrote Raul Keller in Sirp, 7 November 2025 (translated from Estonian with ChatGPT). Read the full article in Estonian here: “Vaimude tund Paavli kvartalis”

“Lauri Lest: pesumasina ja kastekannuga muusikat tehes on kerge huumor juba sisse kirjutatud” — interview (in Estonian) on Kultuuriministeerium, Klassikaraadio, 1 November 2025. Interviewer: Aleksander Metsamärt

Interview (in Estonian, at 25:58) on Ringvaade, on Estonian Public Broadcasting (ERR) – 14 November 2025. Interviewer: Marko Reikop