2025 Oct. 30 - Nov. 02
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A place where we come
together through music
The Busan International Choir Festival sings of harmony and peace by uniting cultures through music.
We share emotions and stories through choir while respecting each other and harmonizing diversity.
Jury
President of the Jury
Giselle Wyers USAGiselle Wyers is the Donald E. Peterson Endowed Professor of Choral Music at the University of Washington, as well as conductor of Concord Chamber Choir within the Columbia Choirs consortium. As a guest conductor, Wyers has led honor choirs and all-state choirs in fourteen states and in Canada, as well as guest conducting semi-professional ensembles across Europe.
She served for six years as an editorial board member for American Directors Association’s peer reviewed Choral Journal and is a current member of ACDA’s Standing Committee on International Activities.
지She has composed thirty-five choral works to date, often on texts situated around her ardent love and pervasive concern for protecting nature. She is frequently called up on to lead workshops in the United States and abroad describing Laban movement for conductors and choristers, and appears in GIA’s new compendium entitled Choral Repertoire by Women Composers in 2024.
Giselle Wyers is the Donald E. Petersen Endowed Professor of Choral Music at the University of Washington, where she conducts the award-winning University Chorale and teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in choral conducting and music education. Wyers is the conductor of Concord Chamber Choir, and her professional project choir Solaris Vocal Ensemble specializes in the performance of contemporary American choral literature.
Wyers maintains an active schedule as guest conductor of high school honor choirs and has conducted All-States in the Pacific NW, Kansas, Wisconsin, Nevada, Louisiana, Nebraska, and Alaska. She has conducted semi-professional ensembles across the United States and in Germany, the Netherlands, Estonia, and Sweden.
Wyers’ choral works are published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing Company as part of the "Giselle Wyers Choral Series," and with MusicSpoke and earthsongs. Her catalog of commissions for chorus, orchestra, wind ensemble, chamber music forces and solo song include 36 discrete works, including a 30-minute cycle entitled And All Shall Be Well that premiered at Carnegie Hall in 2022. Wyers is committed to mentoring scholar-writers in the field, and serves on the editorial board of ACDA’s Choral Journal and as a board member of ACDA's Standing Committee on International Activities.
Jury
Ēriks Ešenvalds LatviaThe Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds is at the forefront of contemporary choral composing. He has won multiple awards for his work, including the Latvian Great Music Prize, had his music performed at numerous international festivals, and has been frequently featured on recordings. Ēriks is a popular public speaker, which he often combines with leading masterclasses and conducting.
Ēriks Ešenvalds has won multiple awards for his work, including the Latvian Grand Music Award three times (2005, 2007, 2015). The International Rostrum of Composers awarded him first prize in 2006 for his work The Legend of the Walled-in Woman. He was The Year’s New-Composer Discovery of the Philadelphia Inquirer in 2010. In 2018 he was bestowed Officer in the Order of the Three Stars, the highest state decoration of his home country Latvia, for merits in the field of culture.
His works have been performed at and commissioned for numerous international festivals, including the BBC Proms, Cheltenham Music Festival, Voices Now, and LIVE from London in the UK, the Grant Park Music Festival, ACDA National and Regional Conferences, and Spoleto Festival in the US, The Singing Network in Canada, Klangspuren in Austria, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival in Germany, European Youth Choir Festival Basel in Switzerland, the Haarlem Choir Biennale and Cello Biennale Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the Oslo International Church Music Festival in Norway, the Latvian Song and Dance Festival and International Sacred Music Festival in Latvia, as well as the World Choir Games, IFCM World Symposium on Choral Music, and Tenso Days.
Jury
Tommyanto Kandisaputra IndonesiaTommyanto Kandisaputra is a prominent figure in Indonesia's choral music scene. As a singing teacher, he actively conducts choir development programs for both singers and conductors, organizing seminars and workshops throughout the country.
Since 1991, he has served as the Founder and Artistic Director of the Studio Cantorum Bandung Choir & Orchestra. Under his direction, the ensemble has performed some of the most renowned masterpieces, including Messiah by G.F. Handel, Elijah by Felix Mendelssohn, The Creation by Franz Joseph Haydn, as well as a range of works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, such as the Requiem Mass, Krönungsmesse (Coronation Mass), Spatzenmesse (Sparrow Mass), Orphanage Mass, and Great Mass in C Minor. Other notable performances include J.S. Bach's Mass in B Minor, Vivaldi's Gloria and Magnificat, Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, and Franz Schubert's Stabat Mater and Mass in D.
He is also the founder of the Bandung Choral Society, which has been organizing concerts, choir training programs, competitions, and symposiums since 2000. Through this organization, he provides extensive education for singers and conductors across Indonesia and throughout Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand, and Sri Lanka.
Driven by his vision to elevate the quality of choral music in Indonesia, he has been hosting choral symposiums since 2003, inviting renowned choir experts to share their knowledge and expertise with participants. His efforts have fostered strong collaborations with choirs worldwide, including the Yoon Hak Won Chorale from South Korea, Darmstadt Choir from Germany, Koro Illustrado Male Ensemble, and the Eastern University Choir from the Philippines.
In January 2025, he organized the 7th Symposium on Choral Music, featuring the world-renowned INCHEON CITY CHORALE from South Korea and the PHILIPPINE MADRIGAL SINGERS FROM the Philippines.
Tommyanto Kandisaputra also serves as the Artistic Director of the Bali International Choir Festival, an annual event held in Denpasar that has been successfully running since 2012.
Previously, he organized several notable choral events, including the North Sulawesi International Choir Competition in 2008 (in Manado), the Tomohon International Choir Competitions in 2009 and 2010 (North Sulawesi), the Jakarta World Choir Festival (2019), the Medan World Choral Festival (2025), and the International Bandung Choral Festival (2022–2025). The Bandung festival was held in collaboration with Parahyangan University Bandung and the National Narcotics Board of the Republic of Indonesia, showcasing his dedication to fostering choral music in diverse settings.
Tommyanto Kandisaputra represented Indonesia as a "One Asia Cultural Ambassador" at the event organized by The Music for One Foundation in South Korea in 2014. On May 4, 2016, he was invited as the conductor of the Taipei Philharmonic Youth Choir, performing at the prestigious National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan. He has also been a prominent speaker at various international events, including the Asian Pacific Children Choir Assembly in Okinawa (December 2016) and The Summer Academy of Lithuanian Conductors in Vilnius, Lithuania (August 2017). Additionally, he contributed to several renowned festivals, such as the Suwon Choral Festival, the Jeju Senior Choir Festival in South Korea, the Claudio Monteverdi International Choral Festival in Venice (2019), Rimini, Italy (2025), and The Busan International Choral Festival (2022). His expertise was also featured at the Malaysia International Choral Festival in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
He has represented Indonesia at the World Choir Games and has served as a member of the World Choral Council under the Interkultur Foundation, Germany, since 2006. He has been a jury at numerous World Choir Games, including events in Xiamen, China (2006); Graz, Austria (2008); Shaoxing, China (2010); Cincinnati, USA (2012); and the Xinghai Prize International Choir Championship (2012). Additionally, he has served as a jury member for other Interkultur Foundation competitions, such as the Canta al Mar Competition in Calella, Spain, and the Hoi An International Choral Competition in Vietnam.
In 2007, he took on the role of Artistic Director for the inaugural Asia Choir Games, held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Jury
In–Gi Min South KoreaIn-Gi Min, renowned for his exquisite and refined choral music and precise baton technique, is widely recognized as one of Korea's foremost choral conductors. As the artistic director of the National Chorus of Korea, he has dedicated his career to elevating the standards of choral music both domestically and internationally.
After completing his undergraduate studies in composition at Yonsei University, Min pursued a master's degree in choral conducting at New York University. In 1990, he enrolled in the doctoral program at the University of Southern California, where he studied under world-renowned choral conductor William Dehning and choral pedagogy expert David Wilson.
Min's distinguished career spans over two decades, during which he has served as artistic director and conductor of numerous prestigious choral ensembles in Korea. Notably, he held the position of artistic director and principal conductor of the Suwon Philharmonic Chorus from 2002 to 2015, leading the ensemble to international acclaim through numerous performances and tours. Similarly, he elevated the Ulsan Philharmonic Chorus and the Gangneung City Chorus to new heights, establishing them as leading choral ensembles in Korea.
In 2024, Min assumed the role of the 12th director and artistic director of the National Chorus of Korea. In this prestigious position, he is committed to inspiring the nation through music, promoting Korean choral music on the global stage, and fostering the chorus's role as a cornerstone of Korean choral arts.
Jury
Chang Eun Lim South KoreaChang Eun Lim, a renowned conductor, earned his Bachelor's degree in Choral Conducting from Chung Shin University. In 1992, he pursued advanced studies at the University of North Texas, where he obtained a Master's degree in Orchestral Conducting under the tutelage of the legendary Maestro Anshel Brusilow. He furthered his musical education by completing a Ph.D. in Choral Conducting under the guidance of distinguished music scholars and conductors, Dr. Henry Gibbons and Dr. Jerry McCoy. His studies with Dr. Graham Phipps, a renowned expert in Renaissance music and theory, deepened his understanding of choral music interpretation and performance.
During his time in the United States, Lim served as an assistant conductor and instructor for Canticum Novum, the UNT chamber choir. He collaborated with members of the Dallas Opera Orchestra and Dallas Symphony Orchestra on numerous performances of major choral works, including Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Creation, and Mendelssohn’s Elijah, earning him a reputation as a promising young conductor in the North American music scene.
Returning to Korea in 2003, Lim has been a dynamic force in the Korean choral music scene. He has guest conducted for numerous city choirs and held the position of Resident Associate Conductor at the Daejeon City Choir under Maestro Winfried Toll. From 2012 to 2023, he served as the Music Director of the Chuncheon City Choir, where he successfully planned and executed a diverse range of concerts, garnering widespread acclaim. Notably, his innovative programming, such as concerts for young children, family musicals, and morning concerts, expanded the audience for choral music and solidified his reputation as a conductor who understands the needs of diverse audiences. In 2018, he initiated the All-Generations Choral Festival, a highly successful educational choral event that has become a cornerstone of Chuncheon’s cultural landscape.
Currently, Lim serves as the Music Director of the Gwangju Metropolitan City Choir. He is also actively involved in the promotion and development of choral music in Korea as an advisor to the Korean Choral Research Society and a board member of the Korean Choral Conductors Association and the Korean Church Music Association.
