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Maria Cherwick, originally from the Canadian Prairies, has been playing violin since she was 2 years old. These days, you’re equally likely to find her playing violin or viola in a concert hall, or shredding bluegrass and Newfoundland fiddle tunes in a pub. Maria has toured extensively across North and South America, Eastern Europe and the Caribbean, but enjoys playing shows at home in Newfoundland most of all!


Maria has played shows with a good majority of the musicians in the province, but appears regularly with her Ukrainian speed-folk band The Kubasonics, as well as The Old Contemporaries and Flower Hill, to name a few. She released an album in 2024 with her trad “super group” Jockey Special, and recently recorded an album of Ukrainian classical music with Sunflower Duo, to be released later in 2026!


When she’s not on stage, Maria enjoys creating art, crafts, and starting (though less often finishing) DIY projects - always under the careful supervision of her cat, Calvin. She is a fierce advocate for good lighting and stage decor, and loves to lean into a good theme. She is thrilled to be designing this year's stage at The Ship for Lawnya Vawnya!

We respectfully acknowledge the land on which we gather as the ancestral homelands of the Beothuk, whose culture has now been erased forever. We also acknowledge the island of Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland) as the unceded, traditional territory of the Beothuk and the Mi'kmaq. And we acknowledge Labrador as the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Innu of Nitassinan, the Inuit of Nunatsiavut, and the Inuit of NunatuKavut. We recognize all First Peoples who were here before us, those who live with us now, and the seven generations to come. As First Peoples have done since time immemorial, we strive to be responsible stewards of the land and to respect the cultures, ceremonies, and traditions of all who call it home. As we open our hearts and minds to the past, we commit ourselves to working in a spirit of truth and reconciliation to make a better future for all.

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© 2026 LAWNYA VAWNYA

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LAWNYA VAWNYA

HQ: 4 Clift’s Baird's Cove, St. John's, NL 

Mailing: PO Box 1052, STN C, St. John's, NL , A1C 5M5

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