Georgia Singing Pilgrimage

Nino Naneishvili holds a Bachelor of Arts in Piano, a Master of Sacred Music from Tbilisi State Conservatory, as well as a PhD in ethnomusicology from Ilia State University. Nino is a lecturer at the University of Church Chant and at Rose Bruford College in London, as well as an assistant professor at Giorgi Mtatsmindeli University. She has published several articles on the Georgian singing tradition, especially on sacred music. As an award-winning singer, she was a member of various folk ensembles and church choirs such as the Sathanao choir and the Alilo Ensemble. She has performed and offered workshops throughout Europe. Nino also served as strategy coordinator for the Ministry of Culture from 2015 to 2016 and has been guiding annual tours in a dozen Georgian regions over the past 20 years.

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The Chamgeliani Sisters – Ana, Eka, and Madona – are a trio coming from a long lineage of singers from the isolated and mountainous province of Svaneti. Keeping their oral tradition alive, they sing songs that have been passed down for centuries from generation to generation.

Ana, Eka, and Madona grew up in Svaneti and deep knowledge of the ecosystem and the culture in which the songs emerged. Ana, who is also a member of ensemble Sathanao, is a virtuoso on the ch'uniri, a 3-string bowed viol. Madona is an ethnomusicologist and scholar of Svan culture.Her research includes studying and recording ancient songs about the forest queen Dali. Eka is a housewife and plays an important role in hosting guests at their home in the village of Lakhushdi. All three sisters are at the helm of the effort to preserve and continue the singing tradition of Svaneti.

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Dr Swan Dao is the founder of the Institute of Devotional Arts, which designs learning and healing experiences through the expressive arts. Swan studied and taught philosophy, theology, psychology,and theatre in Oxford, Melbourne, Paris, and Chicago, and earned a PhD from the University of Cambridge, focusing on self-transformation and system change.

A certified coach and psychotherapist, educator, and experience designer, Swan has worked with Fortune 500 companies and spoken at leading conferences across 20 countries. He collaborates with educational and artistic institutions such as the Alef Trust, the Roy Hart Centre, and Arthaus Berlin, and has designed experiences for such events as the World Economic Forum, the Arts & Peace Encounter at the Caux Palace, and Europe’s premier trauma conference at the University of Oxford.

Blending social science, embodiment, and theatre, his work revives the original spirit of both art and psychotherapy: tending to the soul with depth, creativity, and care.

Avtandil Turkia (Avto) is a singer, ensemble director, and music teacher with a lifelong dedication to Georgian traditional song-chanting. Coming from a family of singers, Avto’s heritage is steeped in music. He holds both a BA and an MA in traditional Georgian folk singing from Giorgi Mtatsmindeli University and Shota Rustaveli Theater University. Avto currently leads the ensemble “Mkhedrebi” and serves as the head of music at the Khukhunaishvili school. Together with his family — his mother Laliko, his wife Ninutsa, and their baby boy — Avto warmly welcomes guests, offering them an authentic connection to the soul of Georgian folk music.

Besiki (Beso) Chitanava is a Megrelian singer, folklorist, and cultural guardian based in Zugdidi, Samegrelo, Georgia. Founder of the Folklore House of Zugdidi, he has created a living museum where visitors experience Megrelian traditions through song, cuisine, and storytelling. A gifted host and performer, Beso brings ancestral music to life around a shared table, blending heartfelt hospitality with deep cultural knowledge. Trained in traditional Georgian polyphony, he has dedicated his life to preserving and teaching regional songs from Samegrelo and beyond. His Folk House is both a home and a haven — where music, memory, and community intertwine.