Sean Godden was born in London, England. Having moved to Macau, China, less than a year old, he started studying the piano at the age of 6.

In October 2023, Sean won First Prize in the Wharfedale Piano Festival and was also awarded the Dame Fanny Waterman Gold Medal with the highest mark ever achieved in the history of the competition.  This particular award included the honour from the Leeds International Piano Competition Organisation to participate in Dame Waterman's 104th Birthday Celebration and World Piano Day in Leeds during the month of March 2024.

In June 2024, Sean won the Jury Special Prize for Excellence in the Concours Ile-de-France Piano Competition in Paris as well as securing the First Prize at the Watford Festival Piano Competition in February 2025.

Sean has also been awarded First Prize in the EPTA UK National Piano Competition in March 2025, as well as First Prize at the RNCM’s annual Mark Ray Piano Recital Prize in May 2025 and the RNCM Marjorie Clementi Memorial Award in July 2025.

Sean's most recent achievement has been taking part in a concert featuring the last five Piano Sonatas by Beethoven in May 2025, where he concluded the Sonata Marathon with Beethoven's ‘Hammerklavier’ Sonata (op 106).

Sean will be featured in the magazine Piano Professional in 2025 and is also scheduled to play Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto with the Shrewsbury Sinfonia in April 2026 under the baton of Martin Cook at Shrewsbury Abbey, not to mention recently being offered a ‘New Artist’ recital for the Keyboard Charitable Trust next year.

As of September 2024, Sean is a second year undergraduate scholar at The Royal Northern College of Music under Graham Scott.