Stewart French

Stewart French is a British classical guitarist known for performances with leading orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, and broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM. A graduate in Mathematics from Cambridge University, he later trained at the Royal Academy of Music, where he was awarded the DipRAM for the highest-marked postgraduate guitar recital in the Academy’s history.

He has appeared internationally as a soloist and chamber musician with ensembles such as the Tetra Guitar Quartet and CHROMA Ensemble, and has recorded for major classical labels including Harmonia Mundi USA, Naxos, and Universal. His collaborators have included Sir John Rutter, Tarik O’Regan, Paul Hillier, Dame Felicity Palmer, and the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.

Stewart is passionate about access to music-making. Since 2011 he has been a visiting lecturer at the University of London on guitar technique, and his book "The Way of the Guitar" was bought by Penguin Random House in 2017. Past roles include teaching at a number of London's most prestigious schools, including King's College School, Sussex House School, City Girl's School and The Unicorn School.

Alongside his guitar career, Stewart founded the award-winning documentary series Fly On The Wall (2015–2023), filming over 300 leading musicians in session. His work as a filmmaker and in audio production has been featured by the BBC, The Times, and released by labels including Hyperion, Naxos, Universal and Deutsche Gramophone.