Shea Welsh

Shea  Welsh, the Baltimore-born, east coast-raised Los Angeles transplant, is  a guitarist, songwriter and producer.  His ability to move freely  through any genre keeps him at the top of many music makers' lists. Shea  has logged countless hours as a session player with the industry's top  producers such as Trickey Stewart on Raven Symoné’s recordings, and  Daniel Lanois with The Jane Carrey Band. As a sideman, he has shared the  stage with many of the world’s finest musicians including The Edge,  guitarist from U2; Flea, bassist of The Red Hot Chili Peppers; Stewart  Copeland, drummer for The Police; the bands Heatwave and Peaches &  Herb; and John Taylor, bassist of Duran Duran. Shea can be heard on many  film and television shows including, most recently, The Disney Movie  Cloud 9 and the PBS Show Coastal California.

Shea is also prolific in the jazz world. He is a Blujazz Recording  Artist and released his debut recording Arrival in 2017. Recent  appearances of note include record release shows at Windmill Craftworks  in Bangalore, India, An Die Musik in Baltimore, MD, and The South Bend  Indiana Jazz Festival with Michelle Coltrane. He performed at the 2016  Long Island Jazz & Blues Festival, 2014, 2015 and 2018 Panama Jazz  Festivals, headlining The 2013 Miami Beach Jazz Festival with Michelle  Coltrane, and sold out Yoshi's Jazz Club in Oakland, CA in March 2014.  Shea co-wrote four songs and produced and played on seven tracks from  Michelle Coltrane’s new Blujazz recording Awakening, and he is the  acting musical director for her touring band. He is sought after as a  jazz sideman, with recent performances alongside saxophonist Ronnie Laws  and in The Paul McDonald Big Band. Shea’s newest project is Renaissance Heart, the new global music  group that merges the artistry of two-time Grammy winning vocalist Hila  Plitmann and world renowned tabla master Aditya Kalyanpur. 

Along with  special guests, they create organic, reimagined connections between  classical, jazz, folk, rock and world music genres.His songwriting skills have landed him placements on projects as  diverse as the TV show Lincoln Heights and records by the R&B group  Christion.As a producer, Shea has worked with Michelle Coltrane on her Blujazz  recording “Awakening”.  He produced Renaissance Heart’s debut album.  He  has also worked with The Jane Carrey Band and emerging artists, The  Hipnotics, My Serenity and Chris Monaghan.

Shea  has also distinguished himself as an educator.  He runs The Shea Welsh  Institute of Jazz.  He has run the USC Thornton School of Music Summer  Guitar Seminar for 18 years, and has written two instructional books for  The Alfred Publishing Company: Blues Guitar Lessons Volume I and II.Shea is a concerned environmentalist and philanthropist, realized  through his work as the Director of Education for Geoveristy, which is a  creative community that combines the performing and visual arts with  conservation, research and community outreach, set in the rainforest of  Panama in the 13,000 acre Mamoní Valley Preserve.Shea holds a Bachelor's Degree in Jazz and Commercial Music from  Towson University in Baltimore Maryland, and a Master of Music Degree in  Studio/Jazz Guitar from The University of Southern California Thornton  School of Music.