Pianist and composer Christos Danakas has been awarded the 1st Prize in the Composition category at the Classical Music Stars International Competition in Gdańsk, Poland, for his song cycle First Land (Πρώτη Γη) for high voice and piano.

The award marks an important distinction for a work that holds a special place in Christos’s artistic journey. Written after many years of living away from Greece, First Land explores the idea of homeland as an inner landscape of memory, voices, and light, while placing the land itself at the center as a living presence that carries time, traces, and human experience.

The four-song cycle was recorded with soprano Maria Taxidou at Studio Park in Stuttgart and was released earlier this year on all major digital platforms.

Christos Danakas expresses his gratitude to the competition jury for this recognition and to Maria Taxidou for her artistic contribution to the project, bringing the music and poetry of First Land to life through her interpretation.

This award represents another important milestone in the ongoing journey of First Land, a work that continues to reach new audiences through both performance and international recognition.