About Me

Sean MacCarthy-Grant (he/they) is a pianist, percussionist, educator, and composer from Seattle, Washington, based in Washington. D.C. Sean has performed with groups across the country and beyond such as the Maryland Symphony Orchestra and Smithsonian Masterworks Jazz Orchestra alongside greats such as Louis Hayes, Midori Gotō, Camille Thurman, Nick Kendall, the String Queens, and Sean Jones. He regularly works as an accompanist with groups such as the American Pops Orchestra and the Howard University Department of Music, and has been heard in venues from Seattle’s Benaroya Hall to the Supreme Court of the United States to the embassies of France and Belgium. Sean has held principal and section positions in ensembles across the country, such as the Atlantic Music Festival Contemporary Ensemble, Miami Music Festival Opera Orchestra, Lake George Festival Orchestra, Capital City Symphony, Mostly Modern Festival Orchestra, and Howard University’s Concert Band and Jazz Ensemble, where he serves as principal percussion. Sean toured throughout Europe with the North Stars Chamber Orchestra as principal percussionist and collaborative pianist, and currently studies multi-disciplinary music at Howard University with faculty such as Dr. Natalia Kazaryan, Christopher Barrick, and Charlie Young III.

A nationally-awarded composer, Sean’s works have been premiered and recorded by ensembles such as the United States Army Band, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Unheard-of//Ensemble, counter)induction, M2M String Duo, and the American Modern Ensemble, and have been heard in venues across the world from festival performances at the Mostly Modern, RED NOTE, Atlantic, and Alba Music Festivals to the three albums he has released with the Howard University Jazz Ensemble. Sean has published works for ensembles from solo instruments to symphony orchestra across classical, rock, funk, and American roots styles. His work “Pulsatio” was premiered in 2021 by members of the Seattle Symphony as part of the Merriman Family Young Composer’s Workshop, and his other works have attained honors from competitions throughout the country such as the WSMTA Student Composition Competition, Simon-Fiset Youth Composition Competition and BMI Student Composer Awards Competition. Sean’s work “A Minor Offense”