Nana Mouschouri's singing talent has been recognized internationally. She was born in Hania, Crete, and studied music at the National Conservatory of Greece. In 1958 she met Manos Hatzidakis, a meeting that changed her whole life, as he detected an astonishing talent in her voice. Soon Nana was singing his songs and in 1958 she won the first prize for singing at Athens Festival and then in 1960 the first prize at the Mediterranean Singing Festival in Barcelona. In 1962 she settled in Paris and continued a successful career all over the world. In 1986 she was presented with the medal of the Knight of Arts and Letters in France. In October 1993 she was appointed UNICEF's Ambassador of Good Will. She is the founder and president of the Focus on Hope Institution. Nana Mouschouri also was elected as a member of the European Parliament with the party of New Democracy in 1994.