Sarah Slean is a four-time Juno Award–nominated artist whose genre-defying, multidisciplinary career has spanned more than three decades. Signed to Warner/Atlantic Records as a teenager, she has since released 12 albums of original music, toured internationally, published poetry, starred in acclaimed short films (earning two Gemini Award nominations), composed award-winning chamber works, and collaborated with orchestras across Canada. Her recording with Symphony Nova Scotia received a Juno Award nomination in 2021.

Classically trained, Slean creates her own orchestral arrangements and has written for both her own repertoire and fellow artists. She has also premiered works by leading contemporary composers. In 2018, she was invited to perform the first full orchestral program of Joni Mitchell's music, arranged by jazz legend Vince Mendoza, with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Since then, the production has toured to orchestras and audiences across Canada.

An accomplished screen composer, Slean received a Canadian Screen Award in 2021 and earned a second nomination in 2023. She holds a Master's degree in Composition, and recent commissions include works for the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Iris Trio, the Elora Singers, and the Stratford Festival. Her collaborative chamber opera, commissioned by Against the Grain Theatre, received the Dora Mavor Moore Award in 2026.

Her stage musical based on the life of celebrated Canadian painter Maud Lewis will premiere at the National Arts Centre and Theatre Calgary in 2028.

Beyond her creative work, Slean is serving her third term on the SOCAN Board of Directors and teaches songwriting and film scoring at York University.