"It was just this mature musicianship allied to a technical mastery of beauty and infallible security that made her fingers seem like limpets that were sucking the life out of every key. A beauty of rich sound but also a sense of balance that allowed the musical line to ring out with a purity and simplicity that was of authoritative tenderness"

Christopher Axworthy

"Khrystyna Mykhailichenko plays a relatively short and concise, technically and poetically demanding concerto with extraordinary virtuosity and full interpretative dignity. The Orchestra is headed by an outstanding pianist who is unconditionally immersed in Liszt’s Piano Concerto."

Frank Piontek, 69th Young Artists Festival in Bayreuth, Germany, 2019

"Khrystyna Mykhailichenko is an extraordinary talent of rare maturity for her age. She came and played the Chopin Ballade No 1 to me recently and revealed what a serious artist she is, almost as if the burdens of a hard life were being channelled through her playing. This was well beyond the carefree virtuosity one hears in this piece so often. It also had real grip and originality."

Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Principal of the Royal Academy of Music, 2023

Christopher Axworthy

Frank Piontek, 69th Young Artists Festival in Bayreuth, Germany, 2019

Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Principal of the Royal Academy of Music, 2023

Biography

Khrystyna Mykhailichenko

Ukrainian pianist Khrystyna Mykhailichenko is recognised for her rare combination of profound musical maturity and dazzling virtuosity. Described by critics as “a performer of the highest level” and praised for her “technical mastery of beauty and infallible security” (Christopher Axworthy), Khrystyna continues to impress audiences and critics alike with her poetic interpretation and expressive depth.

Born in Simferopol, Crimea, Khrystyna began performing publicly at the age of five and soon distinguished herself as a prodigy with an instinctive musical sensitivity. By the age of eight, she made her orchestral debut in Sevastopol after winning a special prize in competition, marking the start of a remarkable career that has already taken her to major stages across Europe and the United States.

In March 2016, after winning three International Competitions in one month, 10-year-old Khrystyna met a piano professor, Alexei Grynyuk, the international pianist who became her teacher and mentor. He began working with her in masterclasses at the Vladimir Horowitz Memorial Summer Academy in Kyiv and after the first lessons he said: “Khrystyna’s gift is stronger and more powerful than anyone I’ve ever been able to work with before. This is a performer of the highest level.” His influence has added depth and emotional maturity to her approach to complex, challenging pieces, some of which are rarely tackled by older pianists.

Khrystyna has performed more than 60 times as a soloist with symphony orchestras and has won numerous international piano competitions throughout Europe. Her performances have taken place in prestigious venues such as Salle Cortot (Paris), Bozar Hall (Brussels), Gariūnai Concert Hall (Vilnius), the University of Miami and Broward Center for the Performing Arts (USA), the World Bank (Washington, DC), the UN Residence (New York), and the National Philharmonics of Ukraine. Her festival appearances include the International Summer Music Academy in Memory of Vladimir Horowitz (Ukraine), Art Dialogue Festival (Switzerland), LvivMozArt Festival (Ukraine), Musica Mundi Festival (Belgium), Young Artists Festival (Germany), and the Frost Chopin Festival (USA), among many others.

In 2022, after fleeing the war in Ukraine, Khrystyna settled in the United Kingdom, where she continued her education with Graham Scott at the Royal Northern College of Music Junior Department, before becoming a full-time student at the Royal Academy of Music in London, studying under Professor Joanna MacGregor.

Since her arrival in the UK, Khrystyna has given numerous recitals and concerto performances with orchestras including the London City Philharmonic, Corinthian Chamber Orchestra, and North East Orchestra (Newcastle). Her recent engagements included a much-anticipated debut at the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall in June 2025, performing Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F.

Praised for her “extraordinary virtuosity and full interpretative dignity” (Frank Piontek), Khrystyna Mykhailichenko stands out as one of the most promising pianists of her generation — an artist whose performances blend emotional depth, technical brilliance, and a profoundly human understanding of music.