Matthew Shiel
Matthew Shiel is a British pianist who performs 200+ performances every year internationally across UK, USA and Australia in partnership with the Edinburgh, Brighton, Adelaide, Melbourne and Hollywood Fringe Festivals.
In 2025, Matthew Shiel made history by performing the world’s first piano recital of music composed by artificial intelligence at the Edinburgh Festival; his performance was subsequently commissioned by Dame Wendy Hall’s Web Science Institute (University of Southampton) and broadcast on Al Jazeera.
He has notably performed at Usher Hall and The National Portrait Gallery of Scotland (Edinburgh), The Glasshouse International Centre for Music (Newcastle), Glasgow City Halls and has performed with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (broadcast on BBC Radio 3) and The Band of His Majesty’s Royal Marines Scotland.
Matthew has received multiple 5-star reviews in the press:
“a most enchanting concert” ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Edinburgh Guide
“masters of their crafts” ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Binge Fringe
“profound” ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Corr Blimey
Matthew is an Usher Hall and Live Music Now Scotland artist, artistic director of Fringe Classics and a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
What They Play
Matthew has a eclectic and imaginative piano repertoire from early keyboard music to contemporary piano music in a diverse range of styles including classical, jazz, Scots folk, incidental film music, improvisation and music involving the latest technologies including AI.
Matthew is a proficient sight-reader and will happily take requests from audiences.