Hailed as “the real thing, a player with a virtuoso’s technique, a deeply expressive musicianship, and a probing imagination” (American Record Guide) who “has the distinct ability to wring the depths of expressiveness from all that he plays” (Classical Guitar Magazine), and for his “precision, musical intelligence and passion” (Cleveland Classical), guitarist Colin Davin has emerged as one of today’s most dynamic young artists. Recent and upcoming highlights include concertos with the New Mexico Philharmonic, Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Elmhurst Symphony, Richmond Symphony, and Orchard Park Symphony; collaborations with Sharon Isbin at the 92nd Street Y and the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society; and performances at the Aspen Musical Festival, the Dallas Fine Arts Chamber Players, and the Maui Classical Music Festival.
Davin appeared as a featured musical guest on the Late Show with David Letterman alongside legendary soprano Jessye Norman. He has performed at venues across the world, including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (on historic instruments from the museum's collection), New York Philharmonic Ensembles, the ELLNORA Festival at the University of Illinois, the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, the Paris Conservatoire, the Fridge Fringe in Dubai, and venues throughout the United States. His collaborators include GRAMMY Award winning soprano Estelí Gomez, Dallas Symphony Orchestra principal harpist Emily Levin, and Pulitzer Prize winning composer Caroline Shaw. From 2012-2015, he taught and performed at the Aspen Music Festival as the teaching assistant to Sharon Isbin, and has four times been a guest teacher at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Davin’s debut solo recording, “The Infinite Fabric of Dreams” has been praised as “some of the finest interpretations I’ve heard...achingly beautiful...a thoughtful, perceptive interpretation, filled with details often missed” (American Record Guide) and "a first-rate disc...Davin knows the pieces deeply and delivers virtuosic and exciting performances...state of the art" (Soundboard Magazine). As a catalyst for the creation and performance of contemporary music, he has performed with Contemporaneous, Talea Ensemble, Present Music, Axiom, New Juilliard Ensemble, Nu Deco Ensemble, ensemblenewSRQ, and Mimesis Ensemble. Davin was the founder of The Millennial Music Festival, which promoted new commissions and intriguing programs featuring some of New York City’s most sought-after musicians, and currently runs the Century Guitar Project, a new initiative that seeks to commission 100 new works for guitar.
Colin Davin holds a Master of Music from The Juilliard School, where he studied with Sharon Isbin; a Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern California with William Kanengiser; and preparatory studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Jason Vieaux. He holds numerous prizes in international competitions, including the Guitar Foundation of American International Concert Artist Competition. He currently serves on the faculties of the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music.
