A PACKED village church enjoyed a concert by a talented 17-year-old Ukrainian pianist this week.

Khrystyna Mychailichenko performed to around 220 people at St Andrew's Church in Corbridge on Tuesday evening (September 6), with attendees travelling from as far as Yorkshire and Scotland.

Money raised during the concert will go to the DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

"It was incredible," said Khrystyna. "I didn't expect there to be so many people.

"The audience were just wonderful. The attention to the music was great."

Khrystyna and her family are originally from Crimea, but after it was invaded and annexed in 2014, they moved to Irpin, near Kyiv.

After Ukraine was invaded by Russian forces in February this year, Khrystyna, her mother and her younger sister fled to Krakow in Poland and lived there for three months.

They have been living with a family in Corbridge since June.

"It's an amazing place, and they are amazing people," said Khrystyna.

Khrystyna, who started playing the piano when she was only four years old, has won The Hague International Piano Competition as well as various international competitions based in Ukraine.

In 2016, she decided to stop competing.

"I think it was a good choice," said Khrystyna. "It gives you much more time to learn the new programmes, to go to different festivals, and to travel, not just to prepare for competitions and think you have to win."

Khrystyna has performed in concerts across Europe, and in New York, Washington and Miami, and given recitals in all of the major concert halls of the National Philharmonic Orchestras of Ukraine.

Her teacher and mentor is British-Ukrainian pianist Alexei Grynyuk, who has performed throughout the world.

Khrystyna, who will soon study at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, is currently preparing for further concerts in the North East over the next couple of weeks.

More international performances are also lined up, including at a charity concert in Paris this month for Ukraine.

Khrystyna said she was "truly very grateful for Britain and for all the people who are helping".

"It's a very big support," she said. "I have had some conversations with other Ukrainians who are living here and we all are feeling the same emotions. We are all very grateful for it."