An international design competition is to be held in the next few months for a new concert venue in the heart of Kaunas, Lithuania.

Malcolm Reading Consultants (MRC) has been appointed by Kaunas City Municipality to run the one-stage design contest, which will identify an architect to build a world-class music venue, called the M.K. Ciurlionis Concert Centre, with multifunctional spaces for public and community events.

The initiative follows the recent Science Island contest, also organised by MRC for the city, which became the most popular architectural competition in Lithuania’s history. Three studios are currently in contention for that project.

Kaunas was recently announced as the European Capital of Culture for 2022, and is investing millions of euros in its cultural offerings and attractions.

The Concert Centre competition will be launched in early summer and conclude in the autumn.

“Kaunas is a European city to watch – it has a distinguished architectural heritage and is rapidly achieving prominence as a key hub within the Baltics,” said MRC chair Malcolm Reading.

“We are delighted to be continuing our partnership with Kaunas. This project is a perfect successor to the recent Science Island competition - a more complex building, setting a challenge to competitors in urban design, landscape and satisfying technical requirements. We are looking forward to a creative response from the global design community.”

MRC will shape the design brief for the project, develop the design criteria, advise on jury selection, launch and propose the competition through a dedicated microsite, and manage the tender process.

It is currently running competitions for the UK Holocaust Memorial in London, the Ross Pavilion in Edinburgh, and the Art Mill in Doha, Qatar.