Michael Partington

Michael Partington is a Welsh guitarist and educator at the University of Washington School of Music.

Partington had grew up in Wales and had played guitar since he was six years old. He did his first public performance at the age of seven, and by the age of nine won his first competition. During his early years, he had trained with famous guitarists such as Oscar Ghiglia, Eliot Fisk, Eduardo Fernandez, Manuel Barrueco and David Russell. Prior to coming to the United States, he had performed throughout the world, including in Russia, Canada and Scandinavia.

His first American appearance was at the Benaroya Hall in Seattle, Washington. Other appearances had followed, including at the Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, Town Hall Seattle and various music halls in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Nevada, Oregon, and Vancouver, Canada. As his success in USA grew, he decided to visit his homeland, United Kingdom. There, he played at the Blackheath Halls, the Royal College of Music, St Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster St James and the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. He also performed at the Bristol Music Club, Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, Royal Tunbridge Wells and at Brewery and Trinity Arts Centres.

His works were played on various BBC Radios, including BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio Bristol, BBC Cymru Wales, the Great Western Radio and the NPR in the United States. He also played for various Washington based radio stations, including KUOW and KING FMs, KZAZ, KAOS, the Texan KUT and Oregonian JPR.

When he is not on the radio, Partington plays with various musicians such as Stephen Goss, Bryan Johanson, Toshio Hosokawa, Angelo Gilardino, Tom Baker, Kevin Callahan and Paul Taub and is known to perform with such orchestrasas the Washington based Seattle Symphony, Seattle Chamber Players, Seattle Pro Musica, Seattle Creative Orchestra, Orchestra Seattle and Philharmonia Northwest and the Oregonian Wenatchee Valley Symphony, Rainier Symphony and Portland State University Orchestra.

Partington, had appeared at the Appalachian, Northwest and Portland Guitar Festivals. He also played at the Guitar Foundation of America, Llantilio Crossenny, La Guitarra California, Columbus Guitar Symposium, the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, Cascadia Festival and the Bach Fest in Chelan, Washington.