Maria Spengler-Markovic career encompasses a wide variety of solo work, chamber music, orchestral performing and teaching.
She graduated from the University of Arts, Faculty of Music in Belgrade with the ‘Best in Generation’ prize, both for her Bachelor and Master degrees. Early in her career, Maria was a prize winner at international competitions, including Jeunesses Musicales in Belgrade and Michelangelo Abbado in Italy, and appeared as a soloist with the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra of Radio-Television Belgrade.
Winning a scholarship to study with Mr David Takeno, Maria moved to London to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
During her studies in London Maria performed in the Park Lane Group Young Artists’ New Year Series at the Purcell Room, Royal Festival Hall, in the BBC Prom, Wigmore Hall. Maria was also invited to take part in the BBC Schnitke Festival in London to perform Concerto Grosso no 3 for violin with Lev Markiz conducting Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, broadcasted by the BBC Radio 3.
From 1994-2012, she was a concertmaster of St George Strings in Belgrade. After they won Jeunesses Musicales competition in string orchestra category in 1996, Maria continued to direct the orchestra in their appearances at the major festivals in the region, such as BEMUS, BELEF, Ohrid Festival, Budapest Festival and on tours in Germany, UK, Hungary, Austria, Sweden, Netherlands, often giving premier performances, many of which were the pieces dedicated to her and the orchestra.
Serbian composer Zoran Eric dedicated his Triple violin concerto to St.George Strings, Maria Spengler, Arisa Fujita and So-Ock Kim, which they recorded and later performed on extended tour of Sweden with Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra and Dorian Wilson (cond).
In recent performances Maria appeared as a soloist and director of the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, in the program of L.Ferenc Symphony no.2 and concertos by M.Lombardini. Other highlights include Serbian premiere P.Glass Violin concerto no 1, with the Radio Symphony Orchestra Belgrade, broadcasted live on the Television Belgrade; Tchaikovsky Concerto with Mitteleuropa Orchestra, Italy; M.Mihailovich’s Bagatele for vln and orchestra in Berlin Philharmonic Hall,
As a guest concertmaster Maria lead Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, Sinfonietta Amsterdam, Slovenian Radio-Symphony Orchestra, Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquestra Simfonica del Valles, BandArt Orchestra and Camerata Serbica.
As a chamber musician she performed with various chamber ensembles in festivals in Darmstadt, Vienna, UK, Luzern, Brussels, and was invited to take part in Prussia Cove chamber music tours, in the UK. Most recent performances include Schoenberg’s Verklarte Nacht with the principals of Aurora Orchestra, for the BBC Radio 3 ‘In Tune’ program; and ‘Kreutzer vs. Kreutzer’ written by L.Wade for voices and string quartet based on Janacek Quartet ‘Kreutzer Sonata’, in Royal Festival Hall, London.
Maria also worked with contemporary ensembles Musik Fabrik, Cologne and Ensemble Modern, Frankfurt
In 2004, she was appointed Violin Professor at the University of Arts, Faculty of Music in Belgrade. She has given masterclasses in Serbia, UK, Singapore and Spain, where she regularly held violin workshops for the string section of the Spanish Youth Orchestra.
Maria Spengler-Markovic made solo and chamber music recordings for BBC Television, Radio BBC 3, as well as compact disks for Channel Classics, WDR, BBC, PGP RTS, Hyperion
Following the completion of her Doctoral Dissertation on Bach Solo Sonatas and Partitas at the University of Arts in Belgrade, during 2022/23 she is performing Six Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin in series of concerts in Belgrade and London.