Margarita Shevchenko was born in Perm, Urals area of Russia. Coming from a musical family she started playing piano at the age of 5.
In 1983 she moved to Moscow to study at the renowned Moscow Central Music School and then later at The Moscow State Conservatory.
Margarita’s teachers were Sergei Dizhur and Professor Vera Gornostayeva both of whom were students of a legendary Heinrich Neuhaus a teacher of many great pianists such as Emil Gilels , Sviatoslav Richter and Radu Lupu.
While studying at the Moscow Conservatory Margarita has won 1st Prize at the Goettingen Chopin Piano competition in Germany and then later that year became a prizewinner of the 1990 Chopin International Competition in Warsaw
More prestigious international piano competitions and awards followed thereafter which gave a start to her worldwide performing concert career.
In 1994 M. Shevchenko moved to USA, to study with Sergei Babayan (also a former student of Prof. Vera Gornostayeva) at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
After completing her studies she also started on a teaching career, giving numerous masterclasses at various Festivals worldwide teaching as a faculty member at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Michigan State University College of Music.