In 2017 Sean Shibe’s softLOUD project premiered to critical acclaim at the East Neuk Festival, broadcast on BBC Radio 3, before going on to the Edinburgh International Festival Fringe as part of the Scottish Government’s prestigious Made in Scotland Showcase. Challenging preconceptions, softLOUD juxtaposes early Scottish lute pieces for acoustic guitar, with electric guitar arrangements of multi-tracked repertoire including US composer Julia Wolfe’s powerful elegy LAD and David Lang’s Killer.
This summer Sean undertook a tour of China and Delphian released his first solo CD of English music. Future highlights include debut concerts in Tokyo and Nagoya and recitals at Wigmore Hall, the Elbphilharmonie und Laeiszhalle and Cumnock Tryst Festival. As a soloist he appears with the Scottish Ensemble and records with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
Born in Edinburgh, Sean studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and with Paolo Pegoraro in Italy. At the age of 20 he became the first guitarist to be selected for the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists scheme, and the only solo guitarist to be awarded a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship. He was selected by YCAT in 2015.
