Maria Wilgos is a sensitive and nuanced instrumentalist specializing in Renaissance lute, Baroque lute, Baroque and classical guitars, and theorbo. She began her musical education at age 11 on guitar, and later studied lute at the Academy of Music in Kraków and the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz under Jerzy Żak, Anton Birula, and Anna Kowalska (LuteDuo). She graduated with honors in 2016 and received a rector’s scholarship for exceptional artistic achievements. In 2023, she earned a master’s degree in classical guitar.
For more than 14 years, Maria has performed actively as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral ensemble member. She has appeared on stages in Poland and internationally—in the USA, Canada, Austria (Musikverein, Vienna), Germany (Hamburg, Berlin), Lithuania, Latvia, Bulgaria, Italy, North Macedonia, Slovakia, and New Zealand. She has collaborated with renowned early-music ensembles including the National Philharmonic Orchestra in Warsaw, Arte Dei Suonatori, Lautten Compagney, {oh!} historical orchestra!, Il Giardino d’Amore, La Tempesta, Capella Regia Polona, among others. Maria has participated in the recording of over a dozen albums.
Her repertoire spans significant Baroque works (such as Lully, Händel, Purcell, Monteverdi, Bach, Vivaldi, and Corelli), solo Renaissance pieces, and modern guitar compositions (Dowland, Weiss, Sanz, Barrios-Mangoré, Dyens).
Maria is also an educator: she teaches classical guitar, conducts masterclasses in lute and basso continuo (e.g., at summer early-music courses in Warsaw and at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand), and focuses on helping students develop their musical talent and passion.
She currently performs in the lute duo AbsoLutes, the Ribaldi vocal quartet, and a chamber trio with soprano Helena Bregar and lutenist Witold Wilgos. She is beginning collaborations with Wolfgang Kraemer (Bavaria–New Zealand) and Lautten Compagney (Berlin).
Maria lives in Warsaw, is a mother of two young children, and values the challenge of performance, freedom of expression, and the creation of memorable atmospheres. She hopes to support and nurture the creative growth of future generations of musicians.