Lawrence Sheard (Musician)

Lawrence Sheard (born 27 January 2005) is a British musician and producer. Their music incorporates elements from many musical Genre, and often fuses Electronic music and Acoustic music.
== Early life ==
Sheard was born on the 27th of January 2005. They grew up in Leeds, raised with a younger brother and sister. Their parents were not musical, but their maternal grandparents played various instruments. At a young age, Sheard was taught piano by their maternal grandmother. 
From age 6 onwards, Sheard learnt many instruments, including Drum kit, Euphonium (their primary instrument), Trombone, and Bass guitar. More recently, they have started Autodidacticism learning Alto saxophone and Flute.
== Career ==
=== Brass Banding ===
Sheard started playing in the Tingley Training Band in 2011 on percussion. After they started learning Euphonium in 2012, they started playing in the band instead. They moved up into Tingley Brass Band soon after this, and performed on percussion in the 2015 Brass band sections in the United Kingdom Fourth Section Brass band sections in the United Kingdom#The National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain. Sheard continued to compete in the Regionals, playing Baritone Horn and Euphonium, until the band stopped competing in 2019. They still play with the band, and teach in the Training Band. 
In 2018, Sheard joined BD1 Brass Band and competed with them in the Brass band sections in the United Kingdom Second Section Yorkshire Regional Championships in 2019 and 2020. Just weeks after winning in 2020, the UK was put into lockdown and the band had to stop rehearsing. In September 2021, Sheard went to the Cheltenham National Finals with the band, placing second behind Sowerby Bridge. The band then went on to win the Wychavon Festival of Brass in the Second Section.
=== 2016-2019: Early Music ===
Sheard had been writing music in secondary school music lessons as early as 2016, though none of this has been released. In late 2017, Sheard started attending the school's "DJ Club", in which they learnt music production. By 2018, they had created a number of electronic compositions (some of which have been released), and also branched out into other styles including Nu-Disco and Alternative Rock.
=== 2019-present: The Fabric Of Time EP ===
Since 2019, Sheard has written a number of pieces in various styles. Notable is their Jazz fusion piece Transition Elements, which they wrote for their GCSE Music composition unit. This piece incorporated many styles, including Funk, Big band Jazz, Romantic music, and Djent. During the course of their GCSE composition unit, they wrote a number of pieces, many of which were scrapped. Two of these pieces, written in an Afro-Cuban Jazz style, shaped Sheard's compositional style and inspired them to look into genres and musical traditions outside of the Art music|Western Classical branch. 
In December 2020, Sheard released their debut EP, The Fabric Of Time EP, which took inspiration from genres including Dubstep, Trap music|Trap, K-pop and Synthwave. It was created entirely using free software (LMMS) and plugins. The fourth track, Continuum, has its A sections written in 5/4 with a Tuplet#Triplet|triplet feel, which contrasts to the B sections, which are written in 4/4 with a duplet feel. The melody of the first track, Running Out, is seen repeated in the last track, Still Running, only with different chords and in the Phrygian dominant scale|Phrygian Dominant mode rather than the Aeolian mode. The EP was later re-released on streaming services in February 2021.
Sheard has also composed many demos since 2019, the latest being Vocal Demo 2, which takes inspiration from the Halo Original Soundtrack and Gregorian chant. They have also released two demos from their upcoming album Actinide, which is a continuation of the sonic ideas heard in The Fabric Of Time EP.
== Musical style and influences ==
Sheard's musical style is diverse, spanning Classical music, Progressive metal, Jazz fusion, Funk, Synthwave, and other electronic styles. Notable influences include Dizzy Gillespie Manteca (song), Jacob Collier, Stray Kids, Declan McKenna, Miles Davis, Adam Neely, and Andrew Huang (musician).
Sheard's use of modes is a defining characteristic of their music, with them most commonly using the Phrygian Dominant, Aeolian and Locrian mode|Locrian modes. They also frequently use Time signature#Complex time signatures, for example Movement Two of Inner City, which has sections written in alternating bars of 23/8 and 25/8. 
== Personal Life ==
Sheard lists their pronouns as "they/them" and identifies as Non-binary gender.
They are also bisexual.
== Discography ==
=== Extended plays ===
List of extended plays, with selected details
Title 	Details
The Fabric of Time EP	
* Released: 25 December 2020
* Label: Independent
* Format: Digital download, streaming
Category:2005 births
Category:21st-century English musicians