Biography

Mariia Gapon is a pianist and organist based in Switzerland and is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Music Performance – Classical Piano with Organ as a secondary subject at the Bern University of the Arts (HKB). Her playing combines a meticulous attention to musical detail with a warm, poetic sound and a refined sensitivity in chamber music. A particular focus of her repertoire lies in the Romantic tradition — the ballades and sonatas of Chopin, the miniatures and chamber works of Brahms — as well as the Russian lineage of Scriabin, Medtner and Rachmaninoff. As both pianist and organist, Mariia seeks a subtle balance between historical fidelity and personal expression: respect for tradition is interwoven with the desire to let music speak as a language of human truth. Mariia is a prizewinner of international competitions, including the 7th Nathan Perelman International Piano Competition (1st Prize, St Petersburg, 2023) and the 10th International Competition “St Petersburg in the Mirror of World Musical Culture” (1st Prize, 2022). She has participated in masterclasses with outstanding musicians such as Pierre-Laurent Aimard and Tilman Krämer, and attended academies including the Académie Musicalta (France) and the International Summer Academy in Mürren (Switzerland). As a chamber musician, she performs regularly; especially formative is her duo project “Venti Aeoli” with SoFi Oleinik. She has also appeared with orchestras such as the Yaroslavl Academic Governor’s Symphony Orchestra under Murad Annamamedov and the St Petersburg Camerata under Igor Manasherov. Alongside her performing career, she is an active accompanist. Since September 2024 she has worked at the HKB as a student assistant and répétiteur for the vocal classes; previously, she taught piano and worked as an accompanist at the St Petersburg Conservatory and at a children’s music school. Her principal teachers include Vladimir Suslov, Oleg Weinstein and Tomasz Herbut (piano), as well as Julia Glazkova and Christian Barthen (organ). She finds artistic inspiration in musicians such as Emil Gilels and András Schiff. The organ holds special meaning for Mariia: it offers her a deeper understanding of musical time and breath, which in turn profoundly shapes her pianistic approach. In her concerts, she seeks closeness to the audience — with programmes that touch listeners and invite them to search together for meaning, humanity and truth through sound. Her engagements include performances at the Les Jardins Musicaux Festival (Switzerland), piano recitals at the Yehudi Menuhin Forum, and concerts at Rüttihubelbad. Mariia welcomes inquiries for concert projects, chamber music and pedagogical collaborations.