Olivia Underwood is a composer and pianist of mixed British and Japanese heritage based in the UK. She began playing the piano when she was five years old and studied at the Purcell School of Music as a classical pianist before being accepted at the University for Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria. She was awarded both a BA and MA whilst there, specialising in improvisation (jazz and freestyle) as well as classical music. She has performed as a pianist at various venues, including the Wigmore Hall and Southbank Centre, and has experience both as a soloist and chamber musician. 

 

Her love for film and narrative led her to pursue a path within composition, and in 2022 she was offered a place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. She is currently studying there in the Electronic Music department. Her music, while strongly influenced by her classical background, covers a wide spectrum of genres and is driven by her love of storytelling. 

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Olivia has written music for short film and animation projects by the London Film Jam Group, Middlesex University, Maryland College of Art, and the London Film Academy. Films she has scored for have become part of the Official Selection for several film festivals in 2023, including Lift-Off Global Network Film Festival, Centre Film Festival, ED Indie Film Festival, Nosebleeds Film Festival and the Sweaty Eyeballs Animation Festival. She has written music commissioned and performed at the National Gallery in London, and the Barbican Centre for their annual 'Silent Cinema & Live Music' event, this year for the 1926 French silent film Menilmontant. Her music was also showcased at the Bauhaus Festival, performed and recorded by the Bauhaus Band, and conducted by saxophonist and composer John Harle. 

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She has also produced and composed for projects of music and narration which involve the fusion of acting and music, an interdisciplinary art which she is also very passionate about. 'A Brief Account from 1669', a performance of a short story she wrote during Covid 19, was performed with live musicians and an actor in Milton Court Concert Hall in June 2023. In her spare time, she also acts as a background artist and has worked on productions such as Bohemian Rhapsody, Hanna (Amazon TV Series) and 3 Body Problem (Netflix).