Biography
Described as ‘a pianist destined to achieve great things’, Maria Luc is a British pianist of Japanese and Vietnamese heritage from Chichester, West Sussex. Her father is a piano tuner who came to the U.K. as a refugee fleeing the Vietnam war and her mother now teaches piano. Maria has two musical siblings, Imy (pianist) and Kenji (cellist) whom she often plays with.
Maria is in her second year of her MMus degree having achieved first class honours for her BMus (hons) at the Royal Northern College of Music. Maria currently holds the Margaret Allen Piano Award, Help Musicians Postgraduate Award and is supported by the Headley Trust Bursary. She has also held the Dorothy Stone Award and was supported by the Countess of Munster Musical Trust for her first year of postgraduate studies. Maria was also a National Grant Award Holder at the Junior Department of the Guildhall School of Music and was able to attend Chetham’s School of Music for sixth form with the government’s Music and Dance Scheme.
Maria has won many awards including the Norah Sande Award (2017), Fergal O’Mahony Prize (2016), Paganini Prize for piano and violin (2016) and Peter Donohoe Prize (2016). She is currently under the tutelage of Ashley Wass, having spent four years with Helen Krizos. Maria also attended the Royal Academy of Music for one year where she learnt with Ian Fountain. Maria has been given the opportunity to have lessons and masterclasses with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Sir András Schiff, Jerome Lowenthal, Stephen Hough, Peter Donohoe, Kathryn Stott, Michel Béroff and Phillipe Cassard. Maria is a very experienced performer having played solo recitals across the U.K. and has played in such venues as the Wales Millenium Centre and Wigmore Hall.
Maria has been a concerto soloist with the Helix Ensemble in Nottingham playing Finzi and Mozart concertos and will be playing Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto with the Chichester Symphony Orchestra on October 29th 2019. She has also played as a soloist alongside Wyn Chan in the Carnival of the Animals with the RNCM Sinfonietta. Maria and Wyn have played at Liverpool Cathedral for the LightNight Festival, South Downs Summer Music Festival and the chamber music festivals at the RNCM. Maria organises her own concerts annually as part of the Festival of Chichester with her sister Imy, whom she also plays with. She also has composed and arranged several works which have been played in the Festival of Chichester and the RNCM Chamber Music Festival.
Outside of music, Maria is passionate about veganism as a means to drastically reduce environmental impact, health problems and harm to animals. She enjoys cooking vegan cuisine and cycling.
