Jack Hancher

St. Louis Classical Guitar’s season opener with UK guitarist, a “youthful intensity tempered by sophisticated musical intelligence” - Gramophone Magazine.

Join us for our Guitar Masters Series 2026-27 season opener UK classical guitarist Jack Hancher, on the release of his debut album of music by English composers The Memory Garden, on Saturday, September 19, at 7:30pm at the Ethical Society. Jack will be making his St. Louis debut, making up for his canceled performance during our 2024-25 season due to visa issues.

Described by Gendai Guitar Magazine as a “poet and a painter, colouring sounds out of the guitar as if his imagination and the guitar were one”, Jack Hancher is a rising star of the classical guitar. In 2022, he won the prestigious Gold Medal of the Royal Overseas League Competition at London's Wigmore Hall, becoming just the third guitarist to win the award. This was preceded in 2021 by a tour of several European Guitar Festivals as a EuroStrings Artist.

In 2024, Jack released his debut album “The Memory Garden” on the Deux-Elles label to critical acclaim. It was described by BBC Record Review as “clean, clear, well focused and compelling playing” and was selected by MusicWeb International amongst their “Best Recordings of 2024”. The album consists of music by English composers and features two new commissions by Dani Howard and Laura Snowden.