Lunchtime Concert: Amber Emson, violin & Phoebe Papandrea, piano

Award winning British-Italian pianist Phoebe Papandrea was born in London in 2007. She began taking piano lessons at the age of 3 and rapidly gained international recognition for her exceptional talent and artistry.

Papandrea’s early passion for music quickly translated into outstanding achievements with invitations to perform at The Royal Festival Hall London aged 4, Carnegie Hall aged 12 and Wigmore Hall aged 15. She was awarded her Diploma in Piano Performance by the age of 10 and a Scholarship to attend the oldest specialist music school in Britain, The Purcell School for Young Musicians. In September 2025, Papandrea began her Bachelor's Degree in Music and Piano Performance in the class of Professor William Fong at the Royal Academy of Music in London where she has the prestigious honour of being the Dianne Roberts Scholarship Award Holder.

International Piano Competition success has seen Papandrea awarded First Prize in all competitions entered last season; The César Franck, The Béla Bartók, Pianale Fulda, IMF Paris, Mimas Italy, IPPA Conero Kansas, WPTA Italy, Livorno Junior and Pacific Stars LA. Papandrea is a frequent guest at renowned music festivals and academies worldwide including Piano Academy Eppan, Pianale Piano Festival Fulda and The Piano Concerto Festival Florence and Paris. She has performed in public masterclasses with some of the world’s leading concert pianists and pedagogues including Congyu Wang, Elena Levit, and Natalia Trull. She has toured Italy, Germany, France, Romania and Barbados and given recitals in prestigious concert halls from Vienna to Singapore including at Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall, Musikverein Wien, Salzburg Mozarteum, Palau de la Música Catalana, The Royal Albert Hall, The Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican London. As a soloist, Papandrea has had the privilege of performing with esteemed orchestras and conductors across Europe.

As a dedicated pianist and chamber musician Papandrea also enjoys playing trumpet, violin and conducting. Described by Arie Vardi as “a true musician and true artist” Papandrea shares her passion for music on stage with a distinct personality, intelligence and innate understanding of the music she performs.

Amber Emson won first prize at International Competition Hohenpriesnitz and second prize at International Competition ‘Szymon Goldberg’. She performed in halls as Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Berliner Philharmonie, Wigmore Hall, Singapore Victoria Hall, ANAM Quartethaus Melbourne and Rheingau MusikfesBval.

A passionate chamber musician, she attended projects at Stauffer Center for Strings, Yellow Barn, ‘Mit Musik – Miteinander’ at Kronberg, Saline Royale Academy, Festival Resonances, Maiastra, International Summer Academy Salzburg, Rome Chamber Music Festival, IMS Prussia Cove, Carl Flesch Akademie and Kronberg Masterclasses with professors Gerhard Schulz, András Keller, Mauricio Fuks, Pavel Vernikov, Barbara Doll and Kolja Blacher. She was member of LGT Young Soloists playing Phillip Glass’s Echorus on their recent album. Amber studies at Royal Academy of Music with So-Ock Kim. She also plays viola and has strong interest in historical performance.