Maria Valdmaa has received wide acclaim as an interpreter of both early and contemporary repertoire, performing regularly across Europe. The leading Estonian arts journal Sirp praised her “flawless technique and exquisite musical taste”. In 2014, she won the Michael Oliver Prize and the Audience Prize (Michael Normington Prize) at the Handel Singing Competition, London, and in 2013 the Second Prize in the Concorso Internazionale di Musica Antica “Premio Fatima Terzo” in Vicenza, Italy. Her recent engagements include Pärt’s Adam’s Passion with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Bach’s St John Passion with the Netherlands Bach Society, Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel’s Israel in Egypt with Het Residentie Orkest, and Mahler’s Symphony No 4 with Riga Sinfonietta.
Valdmaa studied at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, obtaining Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Early Music and Historical Performance Practice with Barbara Pearson, as well as leading specialists in the field including Michael Chance and Peter Kooij.
