Our Music Director

Born in Peru, Giuliana Contreras began playing the piano at the age of six. One year later, she entered the National Conservatory of Music in Lima, Peru, where she studied for several years. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from the College of Charleston, SC, and a Master’s Degree in Piano Performance with a Certification in Piano Pedagogy from Carnegie Mellon University. She is currently working on a Master’s Degree in Piano Collaborative at Carnegie Mellon University.

Giuliana has won first prizes in the Arthur Fraser Piano Competition, the Southeastern Piano Competition and the South Carolina Music Teachers Association Piano Competition. She was awarded second prizes in the National Competition of Music Performance in Peru and the Claudio Arrau International Piano Competition in Chile.

She has appeared as soloist with numerous orchestras in the United States, Peru, El Salvador and Colombia, such as the National Symphony Orchestra of Peru and the South Carolina Philharmonic.

Giuliana has performed in several music festivals including the International Institute for Young Musicians in Kansas City and Santa Barbara, the Piccolo Spoleto Festival in South Carolina, the Claudio Arrau International Piano Festival in Chile, and the Music Fest Perugia in Italy.

As a collaborative pianist, she has performed in El Salvador, Peru, Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay and the United States. In 2006, she won the South Carolina Music Teacher Association Chamber Music Competition together with the Terranova Piano Trio.