Some details of Llobet's biography are confused and contradictory. The son of a gilder, he was baptized in the month of his birth in the church of "Sant Just i Pastor" on the "Carrer de la Palma de Sant Just", the street where he spent his boyhood, just a few streets from the "Carrer Gignàs", which (from 1884 through 1885) was the residence of his eventual teacher Francisco Tárrega. He was trained as an artist, revealing a talent for painting, and continued to paint throughout his life. His earliest musical training was on the violin and the piano. Later he received a guitar as a gift from an uncle. In December, 1889, Llobet heard Antonio Jiménez Manjón (1866–1919) give a guitar recital at the "Teatre Catalunya" in Barcelona, and was inspired to seek instruction on the guitar from Magí Alegre.