© INTERKULTUR

11th World Choir Games 2020 to be held in Flanders

The world’s largest international choir competition back in Europe

World Choir Games 2020

The region of Flanders in Belgium with the cities Antwerp and Ghent will host the 11th World Choir Games. The event, which is also considered the ‘Olympics of Choral Music’ will take place from July 5-15, 2020 and attract thousands of singers from Europe and all over the world.

INTERKULTUR gladly accepted Flanders’ bid after checking it carefully against another application from Gangwon Province in Korea.

“20 years after the foundation of the World Choir Games in Austria in 2000, I’m more than happy to celebrate the Choral Olympic Movement in the heart of Europe once again,” says INTERKULTUR President Günter Titsch. “Our main host cities Ghent and Antwerp are fantastic: young and vibrant, promising unique experiences for singers from all over the world in one of Europe’s most cosmopolitan regions.”

With three official languages and a wealth of local dialects, Belgium is a great crossroad of cultures and thus a perfect host for the largest international choir competition in the world. Thousands of international participants from roughly 80 countries and regions will be warmly welcomed and immediately feel at home when bringing their music and cultures to Flanders in summer 2020.

Flanders’ bid on the 2020 World Choir Games is a first result of Flanders’ newly established event agency, EventFlanders. EventFlanders is a Flemish government department aimed to attracting major international events to Flanders and to helping existing events grow to higher levels.

"Attracting these kinds of top events strengthens and increases the international image of Flanders", the Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois states. "The World Choir Games are tracked all over the world and will give Flanders broad international visibility".

"Flanders is the cradle of about 1000 choirs, with about 32,000 members who sing every week", says Flemish Minister for Culture Sven Gatz. "I want to give the Flemish choirs the chance to play a home match at the World Choir Games. The execution of this summit event will give a nice boost to our choirs".

The Flemish choral scene and its choral association Koor&Stem have strongly supported the bid since its beginnings. Top-class venues in Ghent, Antwerp and the whole region of Flanders promise great competition conditions and fantastic choir concerts during the event.

At the July 14 Closing Ceremony of the World Choir Games 2018 the flag of the World Choir Games will be handed over from Tshwane, South Africa to Flanders, Belgium kicking off the event’s 2020 edition – witnessed by thousands of singers from all around the world.

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