Since
her debut with the Venezuelan Symphony Orchestra at the age of ten, Eva Maria
Zuk has been soloist with forty-five orchestras in European and American countries
(London Philharmonic, Moscow Symphony, American Symphony and others); under
the batons of more than seventy different conductors.
Her recordings include the two Chopin concerti with the London Philharmonic; a Chopin recital; the Anthology of the Polonaise for the piano, from her own research, first recorded collection containing the historic evolution of a musical form; Haydn’s D major Concerto with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, playing and conducting from the piano, with her own cadenzas; De Falla’s “Nights in the Gardens of Spain” with the Mexico State Symphony Orchestra, reviewed as “best performance available of this piece” by Fanfare Music Magazine; Mexican composers Felipe Villanueva’s and Ricardo Castro’s piano music; and Mexican contemporary composers’ first recorded piano works.
A Mexican citizen of Polish and Ukrainian origin, Eva Maria was born in Lodz, Poland, but her parents moved to Venezuela when she was eight months old. It was there she began music studies at the age of four, public performances at six, and received the title of Piano Professor and Performer from the Venezuelan Ministry of Education at thirteen. When she was twenty years old, she already had the Bachelor of Music and Master of Science Degrees from Juilliard School of Music in New York. Some of her teachers were Gerty Haas, Edward Steuermann, Rosina Lhevinne, Zbigniew Drzewiecki and Leon Barzin.
She has received more than forty awards, medals and diplomas from governments and private institutions, the Order of Andres Bello and Simon Bolivar’s Bicentennial Medal from Venezuela, the Order of Merit and Karol Szymanowski’s Centennial Medal from Poland, the Emblem of Arms from San Juan de Puerto Rico, the Bronze Medal at the Queen Elisabeth of Belgium International Piano Competition, among others.
Her repertory ranges from Baroque to contemporary music, with some programs entirely dedicated to Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, Mexican music, Venezuelan music, Polish music, musical forms (sonatas, variations and dances) and more than thirty concerti for piano with orchestra.
She has offered concert-lectures in concert halls, universities and series of television programs in several countries on the American continent. In the year 2000 she gave concerts and classes in South Korea. In 2001 she presented the book Felipe Villanueva. Piano Pieces in her own revised edition of twenty-eight of his works.
Her resumée appears in several international biographical dictionaries. She was nominated for “International Woman of the Year 1992-93” by the editors of "Who’s Who in the World."