Georgian Music Conference Honouring Nino Kalandadze

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We are pleased to announce the first edition of the Georgian Music Conference Honouring Nino Kalandadze, which will take place on 20 April 2026 at University College London (UCL) in a hybrid format, enabling both in-person and online attendance. The conference is organised by Georgian Music House, with support from the British Georgian Society, UCL Georgian Society, BlueTabla and Geamos.

Georgian traditional polyphonic singing, recognised by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, continues to inspire diverse practices of research, performance, education, and community building worldwide. The conference aims to combine academic research and lived musical practice, related to any genres of Georgian music.

Named in honour of the late, distinguished Georgian ethnomusicologist and folk singer Prof. Nino Kalandadze, the inaugural edition of the conference features research paper sessions, a Georgian singing workshop, and an evening concert with UK-based Georgian polyphonic choirs.

Attendance is free, but prior registration is required here.

The full programme with abstracts and presenter bios is available here

Event Schedule:

09:00 – Conference opening and video dedications

09:30-10:50 – Conference session 1

10:50-11:10 – Coffee Break 

11:10-12:30 - Conference session 2

12:30 - 14:00 – Lunch break

13:00-14:00 – Georgian singing workshop by Nana Mzhavanadze

14:00-15:40 - Conference session 3

15:40-16:00 - Coffee Break 

16:00-17:20 - Conference session 4

17:20 – Closing remarks

17:30 – Reception

19:00 – Concert of UK Georgian singing choirs: Imano, Maspindzeli (London), Chela and Buska (Cambridge), Perebi (Oxfrod), Bednieri (Birmingham), Stumrebi, trio from Edinburgh, Georgian trio

Programme of Conference Sessions: 

Session 1: In Honour of Nino Kalandadze: Personal and Professional Profile in Context

9:30-9:50 Tamaz Gabisonia: Nino Kalandadze – A Public Figure and Colleague

9:50-10:10 Nana Mzhavanadze: The Questions She Asked: Remembering Nino Kalandadze

10:10-10:30 Sarah Cobham: Nino's Song

10:30-10:50 Nino Naneishvili: Lullabies in Georgian and Global Musical Traditions: Socio Cultural and Magico-Therapeutic Functions

Session 2: Female Figures and Performance Practices in Georgian Traditional Music 

11:10-11:30 Susan Thompson and Holly Taylor-Zuntz: Voices of the Ancestors Podcast: 

Bringing Georgian Songs and Stories to a Global Audience.

11:30-11:50 Mariam Seturidze: The First Female Choirmaster in Georgia

11:50-12:10 Baia Zhuzhunadze: Female Singer-Composers in Georgian Urban Folk Music

12:10-12:30 Lola Surmanidze: Performance Issues of Ajarian Traditional Music and Dance

Session 3: Georgian Music Across Genres and Borders

14:00-14:20 Mariam Karalashvili-Laan: Mapping the Scene: Music Export Georgia’s Snapshot of Local Labels and Export Potential

14:20-14:40 Reso Kiknadze: Composition Project from the Pandemic Times

14:40-15:00 Andrea Kuzmich: Beyond the Village: Georgian Polyphony, Diaspora Community, and the Absence of Institutional Vision

15:00-15:20 Teona Lomsadze: Voiceless Voices: Traditional Music in the Contemporary British-Georgian Diaspora

15:20-15:40 Michael Bloom: Georgian Singing in the United Kingdom – The First Ten Years and Beyond

Session 4: Georgian Traditional Music from Outside Perspective

16:00-16:20 Caroline Bithell: Telling Tales: Georgia’s Musical Heritage in the Spotlight

16:20-16:40 Sandro Shar: Frameworks for the Dynamic Interpretation of Historical Recordings of Georgian Traditional Music

16:40-17:00 Brian Fairley: Getting the Band Back Together: Fabricating Historical Media in Soso Chkhaidze’s Unfinished Television Film Shvidk’atsa

17:00-17:20 Peter Gold: Fieldwork with Chveneburebi