Choral Festivals | Choir Tours | Music Contact International

Annual International Festivals

These exclusive festivals are by invitation from Choral Organizations or local Government Authorities and Music Contact International can assist your choir in receiving an invitation. Each festival offers the highest quality venues, exchanges with foreign choirs, exciting Opening and Closing ceremonies and four-star quality hotels and services. You will have the chance to hear choirs from around the world and perform for international audiences in spectacular and historic venues.

• What Makes Music Contact International Unique?
• International Exchange Through Music
• Complimentary Orientation Programs for Directors

Name and Location	Dates	Features

Discover Puerto Rico and its Choral Music Ponce, Puerto Rico USA	November 23 - 26, 2007	A gathering of international Choirs in Ponce, South Coast of Puerto Rico; Performances, Friendship Concert and workshops throughout town.
Happy Birthday Händel Halle, Germany	2008 February 21 - 25, 2008 2009 February 26 - March 1, 2009
Days of International Choir Music in Verona Verona, Italy	2009 Dates: April 15 - 19, 2009 Departs the U.S. on April 14, 2009 Orientation Dates: October 9 - 12, 2008 Departs the U.S. on October 8, 2008	• By invitation from the Choir Association of Northern Italy • Perform for an international jury • Enjoy friendship concerts with Italian choirs
Cantate Adriatica San Marino Choral Music on the Adriatic Coast San Marino, Italy	May 21 - 25, 2008 May 20 - 24, 2009	• Sponsored by the Republic of San Marino • Perform in venues across the oldest surviving Republic in Europe • Meet choirs from across Europe...
Vermont International Choral Festival Concert Series Stowe, Vermont USA	June 12 - 15, 2008	• By invitation of Trapp Family Lodge and Stowe Area Association & WCVT - Vermont's Classic Station • Choirs bring their diverse music to this quintessential New England town...
Vermont International Choral Festival Massed Sing Performance in Stowe Vermont Stowe, Vermont USA	June 12 - 15, 2008	• By invitation of Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe Area Association & WCVT - Vermont's Classic Station • Perform at the Flynn Theatre for the Performing Arts with a massed choir, directed by Mr. Robert De Cormier.
International Choral Festival in Tuscany Montecatini, Italy	June 26 - 30, 2008 June 25 - 29, 2009 Orientation Trip: March 2008	• By invitation of the City of Montecatini Terme in the heart of Tuscany • Enjoy cultural exchanges through music and Friendship Concerts with choirs from across Europe and further
International Choir & Orchestra festival Salzburg Salzburg, Austria	2008: July 09-14 2009: July 08-13	Massed Sing with Orchestea & Individual concerts 2008: selections from Orff's Carmina Burana and Mozart's Credo Mass 2009: selections from Haendel's Coronation Anthems and Haydn's Missa Cellenis)in the magnificant Salzburg Cathedral
Advent Choral Festival in Prague Prague, Czech Republic	2008 Festival Dates: November 20-24, 2008 November 27-December 1, 2008 December 4-8, 2008 December 11-15, 2008 Orientation Trip: July 2008	• By Invitation of the Council of the City of Prague • 5 concert opportunites • Over 60 choirs from around the world
West Africa Choral and Performing Arts Festival Accra, Ghana	November 18 - 24, 2008	• By Invitation of the National Commission on Culture in Ghana • Perform for a tremendous audience in the capital city of Accra • Discover the incredible choral music tradition of Ghana...
Vienna Advent Sing Vienna, Austria	2008 Dates: November 26 — December 1, 2008 December 3 — 8, 2008 December 10 — 15, 2008 December 17 – 22, 2008 2008 Orientation Trip: July 16 - 21, 2008	• Perform in the breathtaking and historic Vienna City Hall • Over 90 choirs attend annually from around the world
Haydn 2009 3 Events with Mass Performances: "Stabat Mater Dolorosa" in Vienna "Missa Cellenis" in Salzburg "Nelson and Harmony Mass" in Eisenstadt Vienna, Salzburg, Eisenstadt, Austria	March 24th through July 13, 2009	Massed Sing Performances and individual Performances of Joseph Haydn Masses
Corhabana Havana, Cuba	April 23, 2008 - April 27, 2010	• By invitation of the Cuban Cultural Authorities • Perform in various venues throughout Havana. • Experience the vibrant Cuban culture

"On behalf of my choir 'The Gwent Singers', may I thank you for the wonderful stay in the U.S.A. We had the most fantastic time with you. The Festival was so exciting to us, and your organization of the whole event was absolutely amazing, to have coordinated all the choirs, the venues, the functions, was a great credit to you. As far as we were concerned everything was perfect. So once again, thank you very much for everything that you did to make our visit so memorable."

Derrick Watkins, Choir Director
Gwent, Wales

What Makes Music Contact International Unique?

From the Music Association of Northern Italy to the National Commission on Culture of Ghana, Music Contact International is the chosen representative for over 15 festivals and competitions around the world. The inviting organizations trust Music Contact to be their voice to choirs on behalf of their festivals and we in turn can offer you some of the most outstanding and unique festivals in the world. The festivals we represent are not exclusively for American choirs traveling to a destination to sing; instead, they are made up of choirs from around the world traveling to a destination to perform. What that means for your choir is that you get to listen to, make friends with and sing with choirs from Croatia, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Africa and further. We emphasize cultural exchanges through music because traveling to different countries should not only offer the opportunity to see new things, but also to meet local people and gain an understanding of their culture.

Each of our festivals takes place annually and a choir must receive an invitation to attend these Festivals. We can assist your choir with the procedure for receiving an invitation.

International Exchange Through Music

The goal of the festivals we represent is to bring choirs from different countries together to share their music, to hear one another perform, and to sing together for large, international audiences. We give careful attention to planning each choir's schedule during a festival so that choir members can meet informally, perhaps over meals, with other singers from European and other American choirs. Concert venues may have the charm of a city market place or the incredible resonance of a Cathedral. Sharing their voices at such venues as the City Hall of Vienna, where Strauss first presented the waltz to the world, or the Salzburg Cathedral, or the Teatro Nuovo in Verona, choirs have had, both musically and personally, an experience of a lifetime.

Complimentary Orientation Programs for Directors

Host cities of Invitational Festivals offer choir directors a Complimentary Orientation Trip to their city in advance of the festival. During this orientation trip, the director or representative of the choir has the opportunity to meet with the organizers and sponsors of the festival. These trips allow the director or representative to answer questions about the travel and lodging logistics of trip and to discuss their choir's special needs. Festival officials answer director's questions concerning such topics as instrumental accompaniment, arrangement of risers, size of stage, and music that their choir will perform. The orientation trip allows directors to meet other directors from the USA and Europe and actually see the venues where they will perform.