Sophia Lim is a Malaysian pianist from Sabah. Currently based in London, she had studied under the tutelage of pianist Danny Driver at the Royal College of Music. Before continuing her education in London, Sophia studied with her mentor, Krzysztof Slomiak, in Kota Kinabalu. Her experiences learning the erhu as well as growing up in Sabah greatly enriched her insight and musical versatility through the influence of diverse cultures.
Sophia has premiered several new works on the piano and erhu, including a piano work with electronics On Manhattan Avenue by composer Ben Munro. She also recorded and collaborated on the piece Urban Luminescence by Ben Munro for the erhu and tongue drum. Highlights include her performances in FestivAll 2023 ‘From Takemitsu to Miku’, celebrating the music of contemporary Japanese composers, including the premiere of Delyth Field’s Digital Lullaby for harp and piano, curated with Malaysian harpist Ian Lim. In celebration of Japanese composer Jō Kondō’s 75th birthday, she has performed the chamber piece Standing for piano, flute, and marimba.
She has performed in the United Kingdom, Spain and Malaysia in recent years, and enjoys curating thought- provoking solo programmes. Her determination to share new music has led her to several collaborations and premiering pieces including Metamorphosis for 4 pianos by John Griffith II, and Stratioses by Chai Nien Chin.
At the RCM Keyboard Festival, Sophia has performed the compositions of Messiaen and Ligeti in the 2021 edition: ‘Old, New, Borrowed and Blue’. She has also performed the music of Scriabin in the ‘Spirit of Scriabin’ edition in 2022, and in 2023 performed Rachmaninoff’s 2 pieces for 6 hands. As part of the ‘Music & Ideas’ series at the RCM, Sophia performed the original music of Paul Robinson titled Maison Satie for 6 hands which was presented along with a projection of silent films to connect both mediums.
Sophia performs both solo and chamber music at venues including St James’s Piccadilly, St George’s Hanover Square, St Mary le Strand, St James’s Sussex Gardens, Austrian Cultural Forum, St Mary Abbots Church, St Michael’s Highgate, St Michael’s Sittingbourne, and at the Royal College of Music. Most recently, she was appointed Ambassador of the Benedetti Foundation for 2024.
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