Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Desmet
Sam, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Looking back, my path has been shaped by curiosity and a passion for connecting people through music.
This journey began in my home country, Belgium, about 30 years ago when I enrolled in the local music academy for classical guitar after hearing a friend play. A couple of years later I found myself auditioning at the Royal Conservatory where I earned my bachelor’s and master’s in guitar performance and music pedagogy. During my last year at school, my curiosity drove me to collaborate with composers and recorded my first album. It was also a time when I played a lot of house concerts and performed in smaller venues, suitable for the guitar. During that time I taught guitar at academies, and conservatories as well to finance my studies.
One year later I auditioned for a Doctoral degree at Florida State University after connecting with the professor at a guitar festival in Germany. Luck would have it that I met my wife at the music theory class and I decided to stay here. Since my graduation, I have performed and taught guitar at schools, colleges (Valencia College), and universities (University of Miami, Stetson University)
To this day, I continue to draw inspiration from different cultures, art forms, and human experiences, always aiming to share something meaningful with listeners worldwide. Working with other musicians, and artists such as painters, dancers, sculptors, architects, chefs,… allowed me to exchange audiences, explore different worlds, and feel encouraged to continue to share my gathered knowledge and passion.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Each artist can share many stories of struggles and battles I am sure and there will always be some of that, but I believe a never-ending hunger for exploring new ideas and new angles from an artist can still accomplish many creative things despite all that. Personally, I guess my biggest hurdles are more mental. Especially when it comes to the buildup toward and anticipation of the outcome of some projects, concerts, and recordings. Over the years many of these outcomes were rather ‘surprising’ and very hard to predict. That ‘unknown’ if you will is not always easy to handle.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work as a classical guitarist revolves around bridging tradition and innovation, creating meaningful connections through music. I specialize in solo and ensemble performances and recordings, focusing on both classical repertoire and new, often cross-cultural, collaborations.
One of my ongoing projects ‘Unity in Diversity – Harmony of Cultures’, brings together music, art, and cultural heritage to connect people from different backgrounds. Collaborating with composers, visual artists, and cultural institutions from around the world has been an incredibly enriching experience.
I’m also thrilled to be the featured soloist for the premiere of a guitar concerto in Belgium in 2025—a project that highlights the guitar’s capacity to shine in an orchestral setting.
People can always hear/read more about me on my website: www.samdesmet.com or listen to my music on streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music as well.
What’s next?
As mentioned earlier, I’m looking forward to premiering the guitar concerto as a soloist in Europe and continuing to work on the Unity in Diversity project, which was made possible through a grant from United Arts of Central Florida.
Together with my wife, who’s a pianist, we have our own private teaching business ‘Nona Cloud Music Studio’ and we’re both looking forward to continuing to share our knowledge and experience with our students through student performances, participating in competitions, recordings, etc…
I have a few small setting concerts lined up at people’s houses as well, which is an intimate setting that fits the guitar very well. I always enjoyed this as I have established many long-term friendships and relationships through this.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.samdesmet.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samdesmet/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/guitaristsamdesmet
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samdesmet/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/samdesmet
