Sean Shibe


Sean Shibe is a classical and electric guitarist from Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. He is of English and Japanese ancestry. He studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and with Italian guitarist Paolo Pegoraro. He is frequently referred to as the foremost guitarist of his generation; his debut album described as "not just great guitar playing... the best had ever heard". by BBC Music Magazine and "the best solo guitar disc I've heard" by The Arts Desk.
Shibe also plays electric guitar, as on his 2018 album softLOUD, on which he performs Steve Reich's Electric Counterpoint, as well as electric guitar arrangements of works by David Lang and Julia Wolfe. Sean Shibe also performs Georges Lentz's epic, hour-long Ingwe for solo electric guitar.

Early life

Shibe was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1992. His mother is from Japan. He attended the City of Edinburgh Music School, as the only guitar student, until he was 14. He then moved to Aberdeen City Music School to study with Allan Neave before leaving at 16 to begin the Bachelor of Music course at the then Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He graduated in 2012 with first class honours.

Career

Shibe has performed as soloist with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia and Sinfonia Viva. He has performed at the Brighton Festival, Aldeburgh Festival, St. Magnus Festival, East Neuk Festival and Marlboro Festival and Summer School. He made his Wigmore Hall debut in 2012 and has performed there on average once a year since then.
In 2014 he performed Alasdair Nicolson's piece Magnus, written specially for the event, at an 80th birthday celebration for Peter Maxwell Davies at Glasgow City Halls.
He was one of BBC Radio 3's New Generation Artists for 2012-2014, and performed with the BBC Singers in a concert broadcast live from St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge in January 2015. His performances appeared on the cover disc of the February 2016 edition of BBC Music Magazine.
'Dreams & Fancies', his 2017 debut album, entered the UK Classical Specialist Charts at No.3. BBC Radio 3's Record Review said of the album: "It's not often a guitar recital leaves me slightly stunned, but this one did. Just listen to the sound, the way Shibe changes the colour even during a phrase... what a seductive sound, incredibly clean playing, and almost miraculous changes of colour and timbre, never empty gestures, always to articulate the counterpoint and phrasing. Inspired by Julian Bream's pioneering spirit perhaps, but this is playing on an exalted level... If you only buy one guitar recital this year - it's called Dreams & Fancies." Graham Rickson at The Arts Desk wrote: "This is the best solo guitar disc I've heard."
In 2020, Sean Shibe signed an exclusive, multi-album agreement with Pentatone.

Awards