Abstract:
Tourism destinations actively pursue hosting a portfolio of events regularly, aiming to establish
themselves as distinct host destinations. All of these events take place in unique contexts, offering
diverse experiences to participant groups. Music festivals and concerts have attracted the interest
of researchers given the diversity of musical styles and target audiences. However, although being
a globally popular musical style, choir events are underrepresented. This article describes participant
segments of the World Choir Games held in South Africa; a first for the African continent. A
postevent online survey was used to collect data from 384 performers. Psychographic variables
were used to segment the groups (perceived event experiences, motivations, level of involvement
and attachment, host city perceptions). Exploratory factor analysis identified two involvement, four
motivational, and five event experience dimensions. Hierarchical cluster analysis distinguished
between three groups labeled as Choristers, Exploring aficionados, and Followers. Across all segments,
hedonia (enjoyment) remained the main motivator for participation. The first two segments
had the same levels of involvement and attachment, as well as the desire to experience triumph
and prestige associated with this world-class competition. However, participants who had a greater
interest in enjoyment, destination exploration, mastery, and communitas, reported greater perceived
experiences across all dimensions, and more positive host city perceptions. The third segment displayed
significantly lower levels of motivation, experiences, and host city perceptions. The results
highlight experience dimensions that warrant further investigation in the context of performers as
opposed to audiences. This knowledge assists event organizers to adapt event marketing and program
content for similar events.
