The 13th International Choir Festival “Kaunas Cantat”
Monday May 5th, 2025 08:53 AM
The 13th International Choir Festival and Competition “Kaunas Cantat” will take place in Kaunas on May 17 and 23–25, 2024, bringing together more than ten choirs from Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, and Estonia. Throughout the week-long event, choral music will be heard in Kaunas’ historic halls, churches, and newly discovered cultural spaces.
The festival’s opening concert will take place on May 17 at 6:00 PM in a venue where the festival has never been held before – the Star Hall of the Ąžuolynas Library (Radastų g. 2). The concert will feature the mixed choir “Gintaras” from Lithuania (conducted by Jovita Kulakauskienė) and the mixed choir K.O.O.R. from Estonia (conducted by Raul Talmar), representing a wide community of Estonian choral music.
The official festival opening will be held on May 23 at 7:00 PM in the Aula Magna Hall of Vytautas Magnus University, featuring one of the leading professional choirs in Lithuania – “Jauna Muzika”, led by Vaclovas Augustinas.
The core of the festival – the choir competition – will take place on May 24 at 12:00 PM at the Kaunas State Philharmonic Hall. Participants are divided into children’s, youth, and adult mixed choir categories. Choirs from Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, and Radviliškis will take part, as well as international guests from Latvia, Poland, and Slovakia. More information about the participants can be found here.
That same evening, at 8:00 PM, the night concert “Cantus Nocturnus” will be held at St. George’s (Franciscan) Church in Kaunas. It will feature three international ensembles: the Choir of the University of Warmia and Mazury of Prof. W. Wawrzyczek (Poland, conductor Katarzyna Bojaruniec), the mixed choir “Fēnikss” (Latvia, conductor Alise Līva Jansone), and the mixed choir “Apollo” (Slovakia, conductor Milan Kolena).
On Sunday, May 25 at 12:00 PM, festival participants will gather for Holy Mass at the Vytautas the Great (Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary) Church in Kaunas, where the Apollo Choir from Slovakia will sing. After the Mass, at 1:00 PM, the festival closing concert will take place, featuring Apollo (Slovakia), Fēnikss (Latvia), and the VDU Academic Choir “Vivere Cantus” from Lithuania (conducted by Rolandas Daugėla).
The festival organizers warmly invite audiences to all concerts, which are free of charge and open to everyone wishing to experience the rich and diverse world of choral music. More information about the program can be found at www.lituaniacantat.lt.