Photo: Ephorate of Antiquities of Messenia

Address: Artemidos 121 (Junction Artemidos & Klada Street), 24134 Kalamata

The Kalamata Dance Megaron was constructed with funding mainly from the European Union and the Greek State, in order to house the activities of the Kalamata International Dance Centre, during the International Dance Festival, which takes place every year in July, as well as cultural events that take place throughout the year. It first opened its doors in July 2013. Every year it welcomes the dance world’s most prestigious names and, since 2015, every second year, choirs from around the world.

Kalamata Dance Megaron is a modern, multi functional hall. It has a main hall with 650 seats and a small hall with 200 seats, as well a massive foyer on the ground floor and another one on the upper floor.

Text and photo: Municipality of Kalamata

Address: 95 Aristomenous Street, 24131 Kalamata

Named after the well-known film director, scriptwriter and film producer Theo Angelopoulos (1935-2012), who was originally from Messinia (the wider area, of which Kalamata is the capital), this amphitheatre, built to host seminars, concerts and workshops, opened in 2006. It is centrally located, close to the Municipal Theatre, on the main shopping street, and just a few minutes’ walk from the Kalamata Dance Megaron and the Holy Taxiarches Church. With its 250 seats and good acoustic, it is a suitable place for the competition and evaluation performances.

Text and photo: Municipality of Kalamata

Address: Taxiarchon Square - Vas. Georgiou & Asklipiou Street, 24100 Kalamata

The Holy Taxiarches Church is dedicated to the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel. The church is located in Kalamata city center. Its construction begun in 1938 and it was inaugurated in 1956. Its architectural style is hellenobyzantine. Dimitrios Kentakas, a famous craftsman, painted its murals in byzantine style.

Text and photo: Municipality of Kalamata

Address: Junction of Sfakianaki Street & Anatoliko Kentro, 24100 Kalamata

The Award Ceremony will be held in Tenta Sports Hall. Tenta Sports Hall is actually a huge tent, used for various sports events. With a total of 2000 seats, it can host all participants of the Kalamata International Choir Competition & Festival. A big stage is constructed especially for the official events of the choir competition, but there is still enough space for the participants to sing and dance together and celebrate the results.

Text: Municipality of Kalamata. Photos: INTERKULTUR

Address: Platea, Aristomenous Street, 24100 Kalamata

The Central Square of Kalamata is the social hub of the city that is surrounded by bars, shops, cafés and restaurants. From afternoon until late in the night, the square buzzes with life, with people enjoying a shady spot in one of the cafés or restaurants.
During the festival, friendship concerts are staged on an open-air stage in the middle of the square and the choir parade finds its festive end and an eager audience to welcome them.

Text: Municipality of Kalamata. Photo: INTERKULTUR

Address: Georgiou Karelia and Simonos Karras Str., Anatolikos Synoikismos, 24100 Kalamata

The Kalamata Music School was founded in September 1993 and operated with 14 students in the 1st High School. Today the school reaches 280 students.
Since 2013, the school is housed in a new state-of-the-art building that meets all the specifications of a music school with general and music education rooms, workshops, a library and a 500-seat amphitheater.
The students of the school are taught all general education subjects as well as European and Greek Traditional Music in theory and practice.
In addition to studying a musical instrument, students also participate in musical ensembles such as European Music Choir, Greek Traditional Music Choir, and Orchestra, Classical Music Orchestra, Modern Music Ensemble, Folk Music Ensemble, etc.

Text and photo: Municipality of Kalamata

Address: Aristomenous Street, 24100 Kalamata, Greece

The Municipal Railway Park is an open-air museum that spans 14 acres and has been open since 1986. It hosts cultural activities and features steam locomotives, fountains, ponds, playing fields, playgrounds, open-air attractions, an amphitheatre, and a cafe situated within the historical station house.

Originally from Canada and now based in the UK, Kevin Fox has spent 25 years immersed in the world of contemporary a cappella. He is known internationally as a performer, choral director, workshop leader, and arranger. Fox was a founding member of the Toronto vocal band "CADENCE", before touring the globe with the Grammy-winning group "The Swingles" for 12 years. He is currently Artistic Director of SING! The Toronto Vocal Arts Festival. Since 2013 he has served as Musical Director of the Israeli pop choir "Vocalocity", and as a member of "London Voices", Kevin Fox has sung on film soundtracks including "Raya and the Last Dragon" and "Eternals".
He was also Music Director on the British television show "Sing: Ultimate A Cappella" (2017). As a teacher and adjudicator, Kevin has worked at various institutions and international vocal festivals including the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (London), Europa Cantat (Estonia), Vocalmente (Italy), Vocal Asia (Japan), and the Rocky Mountain Festival (Canada). Kevin's passion is to help singers and ensembles to unlock their creative music-making potential.

Liana Chonishvili has been the founder and Chairman of the Georgian Choral Society since 2014. She is a Professor, Head of the Academic Choir Conducting Department, Artistic Director and conductor of the choir at the V. Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatoire (TSC) since 2002. Furthermore she is the leader of the TSC BA/MA/PhD Performing Arts Education Program.
Since 2004 she's been Head of the Choir Conducting Department at the E. Mikeladze Tbilisi Central Music College. Further she leads the choirs "Iv. Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University Student's Chappelle" and "Tbilisi Women's Choir".
Since 2015, Liana Chonishvili is the founder and Artistic Director of the Annual National Competition of Children's and Youth Choirs of Georgia.
Former, she was a Director and conductor of "TSC Opera Studio Choir", "Tbilisi Youth Choir" and "Tbilisi Festival Choirs". Since 2014, she has been conducting concerts and leading charity projects and summer schools throughout Georgia to promote choral music.
Chonishvili is engaging very actively in the international choral scene, as jury member at multiple international and Georgian competitions and festivals, as clinician of workshops and coachings and with regular concerts. Moreover Liana Chonishvili is the musical editor of the well-known Georgian composers’ first edition sheet collections with choral works of composers Ioseb Kechakmadze and Jemal Beglarishvili.

Michalis Economou is one of the most active Greek conductors and orchestra conducting teachers. He studied musicology at the University of Athens as well as violin, music theory and composition at the National Conservatory of Music. After receiving five scholarships, he continued his musical studies at Boston University, obtaining a Master's degree in orchestra conducting and a Doctorate in composition. Since 2023, he has been the Music and Artistic Director of the National Symphony Orchestra of ERT. He is also principal conductor of the Athens Municipality Symphony Orchestra, Director of the music department and a regular member of the Senate of the National Technical University of Athens and professor of orchestra conducting at the Athens Conservatory. At the same time, Michael Economou has created and teaches the country's only national orchestra conducting masterclass, as well as five international annual orchestra conducting seminars in Hungary, Malta, Romania, Cyprus and Athens. In 2011, after a vote of one hundred musicians of different nationalities, he was elected Artistic Director of the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, and for several years he was the first conductor of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra. He is a regular guest conductor of all the Greek orchestras and at least twenty different symphony orchestras abroad. He is represented by the leading artistic agency IMG Artists and performs more than thirty concerts around the world annually.