Concerti has praised Sean Shibe’s Vesper, with critic Ecki Ramón Weber declaring that this album is a major achievement.
The review highlights Shibe’s commitment to expanding the guitar repertoire through world premiere recordings by three British composers born of the same generation, Thomas Adès, Harrison Birtwistle, and James Dillon. Weber singles out Adès’s Forgotten Dances, praising Shibe’s meticulous detail and sensuality in rendering its rhythms and harmonies across a broad dynamic range, while describing Birtwistle’s Beyond the White Hand: Construction with Guitar Player as a cubist analysis of guitar music perfectly suited to Shibe’s imaginative sound experimentation.
The review also praises Dillon’s Caprices, noting the great sensitivity Shibe brings to his exploration of tone and resonance throughout.
Vesper is out now on PENTATONE.
