Author, pianist and composer Leona Francombe has pursued music and writing all her life. 
 
Leona was born in England of Czech and English parents and grew up in the United States, where she graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College in Russian and Music and later received a Master’s from Yale School of Music. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna on a Rotary Foundation scholarship, and in 1987 was invited to Belgium by the European Cultural Foundation to create and perform with an international chamber ensemble, Concorde East/West, with further grants from UNESCO and the Franz Josef Foundation of Liechtenstein. 
 
Leona’s essays and fiction are often inspired by music, history, and the shadowy moods of Old Europe. Novels published by Merle Books Brussels include: Vaulted Night: A Novella of the Uncanny (2026), a ghostly historical mystery set in Brittany; The Heron Legacy (2024), European suspense set in the ancient Ardennes forest; and The Universe in 3/4 Time: A Novel of Old Europe (2021). Leona's first novel, Madame Ernestine und die Entdeckung der Liebe, was published in German translation by Goldmann Verlag in 2013, and her debut in English, The Sage of Waterloo, by W.W. Norton in 2015. (Editora Record, Portuguese translation.) 

Her shorter works have appeared in Writers’ Forum, Symphony Magazine, The Bulletin, Humanities Magazine, UNESCO’s Reflections, Explore Magazine and Banff Letters, among others. In 2011, Leona was asked to write and record a series of European essays – Letters from Brussels - for "Here on Earth” on Wisconsin Public Radio.

As a pianist, Leona has given solo recitals in the United States, Czech Republic, Liechtenstein, Belgium, England, Germany and France, and performed in collaboration with: The Prague String Quartet, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Fine Arts Quartet, Marienbad Symphony Orchestra, Lewes Concert Orchestra, South Bohemian Chamber Philharmonic, among others. She gave her debut with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra at the age of sixteen. Teachers and coaches have included: Břetislav Novotný, Georg Ebert, Menahem Pressler, Claude Frank, Ward Davenny, Leon Pommers and Harry Franklin.
 
Leona's piano compositions can be sampled on this site. Please visit her YouTube channel for unique pairings of books and music.
 

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