Sharon Isbin

Described as a musician who plays "beyond virtuosity” (Boston Globe), critics compete to find the right superlatives to describe guitarist Sharon Isbin’s exquisite playing. Soloist with over 200 orchestras, she performs in famous halls worldwide, including Carnegie Hall with Sting, and has premiered nearly 100 works written for her by leading composers. Born in Minneapolis, Isbin began guitar at nine in Italy. Her teachers included Segovia and Rosalyn Tureck with whom Isbin published the first performance editions of Bach's Lute Suites resulting in an acclaimed album. She received a BA and MM from Yale, and created The Juilliard School's first guitar department in 1989. Isbin's over 40 recordings have been groundbreaking events. A first-ever album of American guitar concerti was presented to Russian cosmonauts aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis. She received a 2001 Grammy for Dreams of a World (the first for classical guitar in 28 years), a nomination for an extraordinary performance of concerti written for her by Rouse and Tan Dun, and a 2010 Grammy for her Journey to the New World with Joan Baez and Mark O'Connor. Her New York Philharmonic Aranjuez received a Latin Grammy nomination and her Baroque Favorites features an astounding performance of Bach's Violin Concerto. The PBS documentary Sharon Isbin: Troubadour won ASCAP's Television Broadcast Award. She received Musical America's 2020 Instrumentalist of the Year Award and Guitar Foundation of America's 2023 Hall of Fame.