Prizewinner of international competitions including the Piano Campus international piano competition in France, the Delia Steinberg international piano competition in Spain and the Tunbridge Wells international competition in the UK, pianist Maria Kustas has performed across the UK, Europe, Russia and Asia. In 2007, Maria made her debut with orchestra, performing J.S. Bach’s concerto in G minor with the Moscow chamber orchestra “The Seasons” under the baton of V. Bulakhov. She has taken part in festivals including the International Festival ‘Paris: City of Light’, the Mayfield Festival, and the Saint-Savin festival in France. In March 2014 Maria took part in a concert tour in Luxembourg and Germany as part of the EMCY project. In February 2017, Maria was grateful to receive a prestigious Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe Scholarship.

Having graduated from the Central Music School of the Moscow P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory magna cum laude in 2013, Maria went on to study at the Royal College of Music in London and graduated with a Bachelor of Music with honours in 2017. She has completed a Master of Music in Performance degree with honours at the Royal College of Music with Dmitri Alexeev the following year. Maria has gratefully received a Linda Beeley Scholarship supported by the Olive Rees Prize, William Mealings Award, Yamaha Award and Craxton Memorial Fund Scholarship. She is currently studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna with Prof. Stefan Arnold.

Maria is fortunate to have taken part in masterclasses with such accomplished musicians as Michel Béroff, Marie-Josèphe Jude, Andrzej Jasiński, Vanessa Latarche, Stefan Arnold, Robert Levin, Stanislav Pochekin and Arie Vardi among others.

Apart from her main vocation as soloist, Maria is a passionate chamber musician. She has been member and co-founder of the award-winning Chloé Piano Trio, which shortly after its formation won the 3rd prize at the Birmingham Intercollegiate Piano Trio Competition in 2017 and took part in the summer residency at the ‘Music at Brel’ programme in Brel, France the following summer.

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