Leaders

NIJOLĖ SAIMININKIENĖ

Director of the Concert Institution Šiauliai State Chamber Choir "Polifonija".

Born in 1958 in Šiauliai. Graduated from Šiauliai Secondary School No 5 (now Didždvaris Gymnasium).

In 1980, graduated from Šiauliai Pedagogical Institute (now Šiauliai Academy of Vilnius University).

Worked as a teacher of Lithuanian language and literature at the Šiauliai Speech and Language Therapy Boarding School, Šiauliai Secondary School No 14.

In 1991, she switched to journalism. She worked as a correspondent for the Šiauliai Radio Centre, the daily newspapers "Šiaulių kraštas" and "Lietuvos žinios".

Since 1992, in addition to her journalistic work, she has been the head of programmes at the Šiauliai Philharmonic.

In 2001, after winning a competition, she became the Director of the Šiauliai Philharmonic. She worked there until 2011.

After the reorganisation of the Šiauliai Philharmonic into the Concert Institution Šiauliai State Chamber Choir "Polifonija", she worked as a senior specialist in culture studies at the Tytuvėnai Regional Park Directorate.

From 2011 to 2016, she was the Director of the Tytuvėnai Festival.

On 14 November 2016, after winning a competition, she became the Executive Director of the Concert Institution Šiauliai State Chamber Choir "Polifonija".

Completed courses and seminars for qualification improvement: 'Preparation programme for organisers of cultural events' (Business Competence Centre of KTU Institute of Business Strategy); 'Organisation of manager's work and administration of the institution'; 'Effective administration of the institution' (Lithuanian Culture Workers' Improvement Centre); 'Execution of public procurements by state institutions' (IC Irenata).

Collaborates in the press, engages in literary and journalistic activities.

Dr. Linas Balandis (b. 1988, Lithuania) graduated in Choir Conducting under Vytautas Miškinis from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (2013) and PhD at the same institution, under Povilas Gylys and Danutė Kalavinskaitė (2018). He is the winner of four international competitions: The Art and Education in the 21st Century in Portugal (2009);  V. Rovdo Conductors’ Competition (2014) in Minsk, at which he was also awarded two Special Prizes (the prize of the magazine Belarus Musician among them); VII International choir conductors’ competitions „TowardsPolyphony“1^st place winner, special choir sympathy prize, special prize for the best interpretation of K. Szymanowski „A chtóz tam puka“ (Poland, 2016); International Juozas Naujalis choir conductors’ competition 2^nd place winner, special prize for the best interpretation of Western Europe composer’s piece – Anton Bruckner Os justi (Lithuania, 2017). Furthermore, he has won prizes at five Lithuanian competitions (including the Lithuanian Young Conductors Competition). He is currently the conductor and Artistic Director of the male choir Kariūnas at the General Jonas Žemaitis Military Academy of Lithuania, Artistic Director of Šiauliai State Chamber Choir „Polifonija“. Choirmaster of mixed choirin Music and Theater Academy of Lithuania (Choir Conducting Department). 

POVILAS VANŽODIS 

Conductor of Šiauliai state chamber choir "Polifonija"

In 2014, Mr Povilas Vanžodis (born in 1995) graduated from Kaunas Juozas Gruodis’ Conservatory the studies of choir conducting (lecturer Ramutė Štreimikytė). He is now studying choral conducting at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre in the class of Professor Vytautas Miškinis. He is a national winner of various choir conductor competitions.

While studying in Kaunas, he worked as a choirmaster for a mixed youth choir Exaudi (founded in 2011). In 2015, he was a choir master of the international choir in the world youth project MAGIS (Poland). In 2016, he took part in and won the competition for the position of an artistic director and conductor of the mixed youth choir Exaudi. Since then, he with the choir has performed choral music from various world composers and periods, has organized concerts in Lithuania and abroad. The Choir Exaudi presented the composition of The Face of Christ by Vaclovas Augustinas to Lithuanian audience for the first time and recorded a CD thereof.

While studying in Vilnius, he led the Adoramus Choir of St. John’s Brothers Church for one year (head Imantas Šimkus). Since 2014, he is a singer of a professional chamber choir “Jauna muzika” (Young Music, headed by Vaclovas Augustinas) and a conductor and singer of the God’s Mercy Shrine Ensemble performing the early music of various nations. In 2016, he started singing at the old music vocal ensemble Ignis (headed by Vilimas Norkūnas), with this ensemble he won a gold diploma in the international choir music festival Kaunas Musica Religiosa in 2018. In the same year, he prepared the amateur choir of Swedbank employees to participate in the Song Festival of Lithuania.