Pete Hawkes is a prolific Australian composer, musician, inventor and luthier known for his staggering catalogue of over 1,200 recordings spanning genres such as folk, jazz, blues, Celtic , fusion & classical music. He is also known for his unusual fingerstyle approach and slide guitar playing.
He has collaborated with Bert Jansch, Joe Cocker, Phil Emmanuel, Steeleye Span and Dave Swarbrick amongst others and written for film & TV.
In 2002 Hawkes won the ABC Newcastle Songwriter of the Year Award and won another ABC award in 2009 for his instrumental works. In 2012 he was recognised as an Australian music legend by receiving a MUSICOZ Legend award. In 2017, Hawkes won the Festival of Original Music Award (FOOM) from the Song Writers, Composers & Lyricists Association (SCALA) and in 2025 he received an award from the Australian Songwriters Association for his track “If time was an ocean”
Reviewers often describe him as a "musician’s musician" and one of Australia's most creative acoustic composers.
“If he is not a genius then he is certainly one of Australia's most creative and interesting composers for acoustic music to emerge in the last decade" Tony Bates ..Musicologist/Reviewer' Station Librarian /Presenter 3WBC 94.1FM,
“With Witchcraft Pete Hawkes has once again proven that he has earned his place among the great composers of all time. Pete weaves a tapestry of passionate intricacies in sounds and colours, wedding the rich sounds of a well tuned cello with the romance of Spanish influenced guitar, serenading violin and bass into their musical arms” Pete Hawkes – Witchcraft CD review by Katherine “Nana Mex” Juestel, Downunda Thunda Radio Pty Ltd
‘Bitterly Beautiful’ Jeb Tyler
His work is preserved at the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
