Vytautas Miškinis (1954) is the Artistic Director of the Azuoliukas Boys’ and Men’s Choir, as well as the Professor at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre. He is also the President of the Lithuanian Choral Union past 20 years. He graduated as Choral Conductor from the Lithuanian Academy of Music in 1976. He began his career in Azuoliukas at the age of seven as a vocalist, and continued as Artistic Director from the age of 25.
Vytautas Miskinis conducted the Kaunas State Choir and Vocal Ensemble of the Museum Musicum. Prof. Miskinis is the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the all Lithuanian Choir Festival. He has led the choral performances of this choir in some 25 different countries. He has conducted a great number of compositions for choir with symphonic orchestras. He also lectured and held seminars on the subject of ‘musical education and conducting’ in numerous countries all over the world. He has participated in numerous national and international choral events as composer and advisor. He also has conducted workshops in several Europa Cantat Festivals, World Choral Symposiums, World Choir Games. He is a member of World Choir Council.
Prof. Miskinis worked as a member of numerous adjudicating panels in international Choir and Choral Composition competitions all over the world ( over 200 events ), amongst which one must mention the World Choir Games 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 1012, 1014, 2016. He has led workshops in China, Singapore, Philippines, Italy, Spain, Russia, South Africa, USA, Canada, Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Malta, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Taiwan, Kazachstan, Jakutsk, Japan, Czech, Netherlands, Poland, UK, Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong, France, Costa Rica etc.
Prof. Miskinis has composed approximately 400 religious motets a cappella, 18 Masses, Magnificat, St. John Passion, 4 Cantatas, 2 Musicals with orchestras and about 400 secular songs, which are performed and recorded by choirs throughout Lithuania and the rest of the World. A great number of his compositions have been published not only in Lithuania but also in France, Germany, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, Japan, Singapore, Latvia, Russia and USA. He is awarded by many Governmental and National prizes.

Composer and conductor born and raised in Tokyo, 1962. Matsushita is currently the conductor and artistic director of 13 choirs, which are often invited to perform in Japan, Europe, America, Canada, and Asia. They have also achieved excellent showings in the choral circuit and won awards in international competitions. A prolific composer and arranger, Matsushita’s works are performed around the world. His compositions vary widely, ranging from works based on traditional Japanese music, Masses, motets, to etudes for choirs.

His works are published in Japan by Edition KAWAI, Pana Musica, Ongaku no tomo sha Corp., Edition ICOT, and overseas by Carus-Verlag Stuttgart (Germany), SULASOL Helsinki (Finland), among others. Besides conducting and composing, he is also an active workshop clinician and lecturer both within and outside Japan. Especially, he has been adjudicating at many international choral competitions and composition competitions around the world. In 2005, he was awarded the“Robert Edler Prize for Choral Music” in recognition of his outstanding achievements worldwide in conducting, composing, performance, and education within the field of choral music. His choir The Metropolitan Chorus of Tokyo and he was invited to the National Conference of the American Choral Directors Association in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA as a guest choir and a panelist for Composer’s speak out, moreover as a lecturer for a reading session in February 2015. Also, he was invited to Bach Academy Stuttgart as a lecturer for the workshop about his works in March 2016, at the same time his new work “De profundis clamavi” was performed by KammerChor Saarbrückn as a world premiere in Staatliche Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Stuttgart. He was a member of the artistic committee of the 11th World Symposium on Choral Music in Barcelona 2017, and his work “Salva me” was performed by KammerChor Saarbrückn as a world premiere in there. In Taipei, Taiwan his work “Te Deum” for 4 groups male voices, Organ, String quartet, and percussions were performed as a world premiere by International professional groups in 2017. In 2019, he gave a keynote speech at the International Kodály Symposium (Kuching, Malaysia).

He is currently the CEO of the International Choral Organization of Tokyo, the Artistic Director of the Karuizawa International Choral Festival and the Tokyo International Choir Competition, a member of the Founding Directors of the Asian Choral Association, an honorary member of Associazione Nazionale Direttori di Coro Italiani, a member of the Interkurtur World Choir Council, the Vice President of the Tokyo Choral Association, a member of Japan Choral Association Youth Chorus Committee, Furthermore, he is a member of Japan Composers & Arrangers Association, Special Guest Professor at Kobe College.