Maria Karakusheva

About Maria Karakusheva

Maria Karakusheva is a contemporary classical pianist and music composer whose work blends classical music with cinematic elements. She began playing piano at the age of 5 and won her first prize at the International Competition for Young Pianists UFAM in France at age 9. She graduated with honors from the National Academy of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria and holds a master's degree in Film Scoring from Berklee College of Music. Karakusheva composes and performs original audio-visual projects and has worked with brands like Samsung, Nissan, and Mastercard. She was nominated for Best Composer of Feature Film 2023 by the Bulgarian Film Academy and won Best Score for the film *Time of Insurrection* at the international film festival Cortos Valdealgorfa in 2024. Her recent work includes the album *Forget Me Not*, a neoclassical journey inspired by the symbolism of flowers. In 2025, she released the singles "The Wild Iris" and "Magnolia", exploring themes of fragility, resilience, and inner strength. She also released a music video "Dahlia" shot on the Seine in Paris.