B I O G R A P H Y
PHOTOGRAPH © YUSEF BASTAWY
Sarah Lianne Lewis is a Welsh composer crafting vivid and inventive music that bridges tradition and innovation. Working across the concert hall and stage, she weaves unexpected sonorities into bold soundscapes that captivate and challenge in equal measure.
Described as "charming," "haunting," and "imaginative," Sarah’s music often explores themes of connection, climate change, and the natural world, embracing music’s power to create space for discovery and thoughtful dialogue.
Her compositions have been praised for their delicate yet powerful music, and performed by leading ensembles, including the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Quatuor Bozzini, the Royal Opera and Ballet, soprano Sarah Maria Sun, Blank Space Ensemble, UPROAR, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Her works have featured at major festivals across the UK and Europe, including the Cowbridge Music Festival, Heidelberg Festival, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Archipel Festival, and the Lucerne Festival.
Former Composer Affiliate with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (2020–24) and current Composer Fellow with the Philharmonia’s Composers’ Academy (2024–25), Sarah is committed to shaping conversations through sound; embracing the beauty of the familiar while seeking to reveal the unexpected. In 2018, she was awarded the George Butterworth Award for her stirng quartet ‘Blossoms in bloom are also falling blossoms’, composed as part of Sound and Music’s Embedded: Composer's Kitchen project with Quatuor Bozzini, and received the Paul Mealor Award for Young Composers from the Welsh Music Guild in 2021. She made history in 2020 as the first woman to be appointed as a resident composer with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
Her recent recognition includes the 2025 Royal Philharmonic Society Award for Chamber-Scale Composition for ‘letting the light in’. Commissioned through Drake Music Scotland’s ‘Beyond Borders, Beyond Barriers’ initiative, and written for pianist Siwan Rhys, the piece was praised for its delicate preparation and dreamlike effect. It features on the first commercial album showcasing UK disabled composers, produced by NMC Recordings.
Born and raised in Aberystwyth, West Wales, Sarah was introduced to music at an early age by her family of enthusiastic amateur musicians. She studied at Cardiff University School of Music, earning a BA(Hons) in Music and History, and a Masters in Composition. Following her university studies, she further honed her craft through prestigious composition development programmes, including the Cheltenham Music Festival Composers’ Academy (2015), the Jerwood Opera Writing Programme (2014-15), the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence Academie (2015), the Heidelberg Music Festival Composer Fellowship (2016), IRCAM’s ManiFeste Academy (2017), and the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Composers’ Programme (2021-22).
Beyond her composing, Sarah is passionate about music education and community engagement, and has led workshops and masterclasses to encourage and inspire creativity in musicians of all levels.
Recordings of her music are available through the Birmingham Record Company, Ty Cerdd records and NMC Recordings.
A comprehensive catalogue of Sarah’s music can be found on her Works page, complete with audio extracts and information about hire and purchase of sheet music.
[March 2025]