Recording Artist & Composer
Piano-Yoga® Founder
"...ONE TO WATCH..."
THE OBSERVER, UK
An enigma of the music world, concert pianist, composer and producer GéNIA has built a distinctive career spanning performance, composition and recording.
She has performed at leading venues including the Barbican Centre, Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, St John’s Smith Square and St Martin-in-the-Fields, as well as in intimate jazz clubs, reflecting the remarkable breadth of her repertoire and artistic collaborations.
Her compositions have been licensed for major television productions including the critically acclaimed Killing Eve, Cold Feet, Close to Me, Sticks and Stones and The Day of the Jackal. Her recordings and compositions have been broadcast on Classic FM, Scala Radio, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3, BBC London, BBC World Service and BBC Radio Wales.
Her music can also be heard at Caffè Nero branches worldwide, where she has been a featured classical artist.
Throughout her career, GéNIA has embraced collaboration across artistic disciplines. She has worked with composers, jazz musicians, dancers, fashion designers, filmmakers and visual artists, and has released music on leading labels including Black Box, Nonclassical, Karma Sounds, Chappell Production Music, Universal Production Music and her own label, GéNIA Music.
"A MUSICAL GEM... A THRILLING AND INTOXICATING EXPERIENCE...''
CHOPIN MAGAZINE, JAPAN
As the creator of Piano-Yoga®, GéNIA has developed a unique holistic approach to piano playing that combines classical technique with movement, posture, breathing and body awareness. Drawing on her experience as a concert pianist and qualified British Wheel of Yoga teacher, she has presented Piano-Yoga® through workshops, retreats, masterclasses and international courses in the UK, Europe and the USA.
Widely featured in the music press, Piano-Yoga® has been described by Yoga & Health magazine as “The 21st century answer to playing the piano”, while Piano Professional concluded: “It really does work.” The method has helped pianists of all ages and abilities improve posture, increase hand span safely, develop healthier technique and perform with greater freedom and confidence.
A passionate advocate for wellbeing through music, GéNIA continues to create innovative experiences that bring together music, movement and mindfulness, inspiring both musicians and non-musicians to explore the transformative power of music.
CAREER AT A GLANCE
"... A CHARISMATIC PIANIST"
GRAMOPHONE UK
GéNIA comes from a distinguished line of Ukranian pianists. Starting playing piano at the age of 4, her first teacher was her great-grandmother, the renowned pianist and pedagogue Regina Horowitz (sister of pianist Vladimir Horowitz) in her native Ukraine, who had a profound and lifelong influence on GéNIA. After graduating from the Kharkov School for Gifted Children under the tutorage of Professor Viktor Makarov, who was also a pupil of Regina Horowitz, she continued her studies at the Kharkov State Institute of Arts under Professor Sergei Yushkevitch. She subsequently received a scholarship to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, continunig her education with Professors Joan Havill, Caroline Palmer and Paul Hamburger. Subsequently she completed her Masters Degree at Trinity College of Music in London, under Professor Douglas Finch.
Following a traditional career path, GéNIA made her London debut as a concert pianist in the Park Lane Group Young Artist Series, followed by concert tours throughout the UK, Europe and the USA. London performance venues include Wigmore Hall, Barbican Centre, Southbank Centre, Kings Place, St John’s Smith Square and St Martin-in-the-Fields, alongside intimate jazz clubs and cross-disciplinary performances reflecting the breadth of her artistic collaborations and repertoire.
"...HAIR-RAISING VIRTUOSITY..."
EPTA PIANO JOURNAL, UK
After a number of years as a performing artist, GéNIA made a controversial and pioneering move away from the classical concert platform. She has collaborated with an eclectic range of artists and composers, particularly in the world of piano and electronics as an innovative composer and performer who has also crossed over into the world of pop music. She commissioned over 30 works for piano and electronics and premiered numerous works by contemporary composers including Gabriel Prokofiev, Howard Skempton, Hayden Parsey, Patrick Nunn, Max de Wardener, Mike McFerron, to name just a few. She has also worked with outstanding artists such as the Brodsky Quartet, Andy Sheppard and Jason Yarde.
"GÉNIA MANAGES TO FIND A PLATFORM FOR CONTEMPORARY COMPOSITIONS WHILST GIVING HISTORIC PIECES A FRESH AIRING."
FINANCIAL TIMES
GéNIA’s recording career spans contemporary classical, piano-electronics, solo piano, contemporary crossover and original compositions. Her recordings have been released on labels including Black Box, Nonclassical, Karma Sounds, Chappell Music (for Universal Production Music) and her own label, GéNIA Music.
Her projects include Unveiled, featuring the music of Sofia Gubaidulina, Elena Firsova and Lena Langer; Transformations with violinist Roman Mints; Gabriel Prokofiev’s Piano Book; John Richards’ Suite for piano and electronics, which inspired remixes by leading dance producers including Germ, Vex’d, Kreepa, The Early Man, Trevor Goodchild, Gabriel Prokofiev and Derailer; alongside her own albums and compositions.
Since establishing her own record label GéNIA Music in 2014, GéNIA has released an extensive catalogue of original music, including solo piano albums, singles and collaborative projects, available on all major digital platforms.More recently, her compositions have been licensed for major television productions including Killing Eve, Cold Feet, Close to Me, Sticks and Stones and The Day of the Jackal.
Alongside her work as a pianist and composer, GéNIA is also an accomplished producer. Since founding GéNIA Music in 2014, she has produced and released an extensive catalogue of original compositions, solo piano recordings and collaborative projects for international audiences.
Her recordings and interviews have been broadcast on BBC Radio and television, including Classic FM, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3, BBC London, BBC World Service, BBC Proms and Scala Radio.
"WITH HER POSITIVE, NON-DEFEATIST APPROACH SHE EMPHASISES THE JOY AND SATISFACTION OF PLAYING AT ANY LEVEL AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE ANY PIANIST, AMATEURS AND PROFESSIONALS ALIKE, TO SIGN UP TO ONE OF HER COURSES."
INTERNATIONAL PIANO MAGAZINE
Following the creation of Piano-Yoga®, GéNIA has presented workshops, retreats, masterclasses and courses for professional musicians, teachers, advanced amateurs and students in the UK and internationally. Her Piano-Yoga® work has been presented at venues including Steinway Hall, Schott Music, Kings Place and the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building in Oxford, as well as for the California Association of Professional Music Teachers in the USA, music teachers in the Netherlands, and at events in Monaco, Nice, Paris and Cyprus. She has also delivered Piano-Yoga® programmes online internationally, including to musicians in Ukraine, and presented live Piano-Yoga® lessons on BBC London Radio 94.9.
GéNIA supports charitable causes, as she believes that the role of the artist is greater than just to create art. One of the highlights include a gala concert for UNICEF at Cote d’Azur which raised funds for one year’s education for 560 girls from Guinéa, Mozambique, Togo, Malaysia and Madagascar.
GéNIA is regularly invited to become involved in numerous educational projects; she is currently on the Board of Directors of 'Mysuka', a Californian Children's Choir, USA.
GéNIA treasures the close relationship she has built with her audiences. She regularly meets concertgoers after performances, welcomes photographs and conversation, and has even invited listeners to help name some of her compositions. Over the years, this openness has fostered a particularly loyal and engaged audience around her work.
In response to the war in Ukraine, GéNIA established the UK charity Support Kharkiv Foundation to provide humanitarian and psychological support for the citizens of Kharkiv and the surrounding region, where she was born. GéNIA regularly performs in support of Ukraine, taking part in fundraising and solidarity events, including her performance at London’s Trafalgar Square. www.kharkivfoundation.org
Today, GéNIA continues to combine her international performing career with composition, education and innovative wellbeing initiatives, exploring new ways of connecting audiences with music.
