Brendan Shea

Brendan Shea is an internationally recognized soloist, chamber musician, and teacher.
He began his studies at the age of 3 in Brussels, Belgium. He attended the Beijing
Conservatory, studying with Zhao Wei, between the ages of 5 and 8. He made his debut with
orchestra at the age of 11 in Washington D.C., playing the Paganini Concerto No. 1 in D Major.
He also performed Sarasate’s Carmen Fantasy the same year in Carnegie Hall. He has since
performed with orchestras in Brussels, Sendai, Indianapolis, South Bend, Seattle, and Boise.
His award winning duo, The Shea-Kim Duo, tours internationally and performs recitals in Asia,
Europe and North America. Their awards include the Ackerman Chamber Music Award and
Gold Medal at the Manhattan International Music Competition. Their third CD, “All Roads”, was
released by Blue Griffin Records in the fall of 2023, and has been reviewed favorably by Strings
Magazine, Gramophone, The BBC, and others. Their previous CD, “The Sound and the Fury”,
also released by Blue Griffin, was also favorably reviewed by numerous international
publications. Their most recent studio album “Touch” was recorded in May, and will be released
sometime at the end of 2024.

Brendan is also an active chamber musician, performing and teaching at Encore
Chamber Music Institute in Cleveland and Zephyr Chamber Music in Courmayeur, Italy. He has
performed at festivals across the United States and Europe as an artist faculty, including the
Anchorage Chamber Music Festival, Annapolis Chamber Music, Harborfront Chamber Music,
Evergreen Chamber Music, and others. He premiered Frederic Rzewski’s Night, Death, and
Devil with the Emmy Award winning 8th Blackbird. He has been a finalist and semi-finalist at the
Queen Elisabeth, Isang-Yun, Seoul, Sibelius, and Carl Nielsen, and has taken first place with
Honors at the Glazunov International Competition in Paris. His quartet chamber music awards
were won when he played with the Wasmuth Quartet(Now Verona) and include the Bronze
Medal at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition, Gold Medal and Audience Award
at the Chesapeake International Chamber Music Competition, Silver at the Fischoff Chamber
Music Competition, and Grand Prize at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition. He was also
a violinist in the award winning Euclid Quartet and was in residence at Indiana University, South
Bend, and visiting faculty at the University of Notre Dame. He also previously served as
concertmaster of the Boise Philharmonic and Langroise Trio Artist-in-Residence at the College
of Idaho.

Brendan Shea is currently Visiting Professor of Violin and Chamber Music at Central
Washington University. He resides in Ellensburg, Washington. He currently performs on a violin
made for him by Samuel Zygmuntowicz, and a bow by Delphine Petitjean.