Winner of the Exceptional Talent Award, Maya Youssef currently lives in London finishing a PhD dissertation titled Music Healing for Syrian Refugee Children at SOAS University. Her musical talents have taken her around the world to perform her unique version of playing the qanun. Trained at the High Institute of Music and Dramatic Arts in Damascus, she moved to Dubai as well as to Oman twhere she performed in concerts while also continuing her studies. She has been described as having extraordinary musical talents with magnanimity, warmth, humour and optimism.