Andrew-John Smith is an English church musician, concert organist and conductor. Between 2008 and 2012, he recorded the complete organ works by Camille Saint-Saëns in three volumes. Since 1997, he has been director of music at St Peter's, Eaton Square.

Biography

Smith studied at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and the Sweelinck Conservatorium in Amsterdam. He has been director of music at St Peter's, Eaton Square, in London since 1997. In that position he has held the Eaton Square Concerts. Smith performed music by Josef Rheinberger with the National Musicians Symphony Orchestra at St John’s on Smith Square, and works by

Francis Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (; 7 January 189930 January 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among the best-kno ...

and Saint-Saëns with the English Chamber Orchestra. He has collaborated with the

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lute" can ref ...

nist Elizabeth Kenny, the ensemble The Quintessential Sackbut and Cornett Ensemble, and Leslie Howard, among others. He has frequently performed with the

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...

Robin Blaze Robin Blaze (born 1971 in Manchester) is an English countertenor. Early life The son of Peter Blaze, a professional golfer, and Christine, Blaze and his brother Mark grew up in Shadwell, near Leeds, and was educated at Leeds Grammar School, ...

in recitals and broadcasts of for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

. Smith recorded the complete organ works by

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

in three volumes between 2008 and 2012. He has been the conductor of the

chamber choir A chamber choir is a small or medium-sized choir of roughly 8 to 40 singers (occasionally called 'chamber singers'), typically singing classical or religious music in a concert setting. (This is distinct from e.g. a church choir, which sings in rel ...

Consortium, with whom he recorded works by

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

(2009) and

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, as a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University ...

(2010). Works by Brahms include besides the '' Zigeunerlieder'' an overview of his

partsongs A part song, part-song or partsong is a form of choral music that consists of a song to a secular or non-liturgical sacred text, written or arranged for several vocal parts. Part songs are commonly sung by an SATB choir, but sometimes for an all ...

, ''Drei Quartette'' (Three quartets), Op. 64, ''Sechs Lieder und Romanzen'', Op. 93a, ''Fünf Gesänge'' (Five songs), Op. 104, and ''Dem dunkeln Schoss der heil'gen Erde'', WoO 20. The Reger collection contains his ''

Der Einsiedler ' (''The Hermit'') Op. 144a, is a composition for baritone soloist, five-part choir and orchestra by Max Reger, written in 1915. The German text is a poem by Joseph von Eichendorff, beginning "" (Come, consolation of the world, you quiet night) ...

'', Op. 144a (1915), ''Drei Chöre'', Op. 39 (1899), ''Drei Gesänge'', Op. 111b, '' Palmsonntagmorgen'' (1902) and ''Requiem'' Op. 144a (1916), with piano accompaniment. A reviewer noted that in the "surprisingly varied programme", "the intimate works "demonstrate the directness and simplicity that characterises much of Reger's music", while the music originally conceived for choir and orchestra "retains its symphonic grandeur even in this more intimate environment".

Selected recordings

* Camille Saint-Saëns: ''Organ Music'' (2008–2012) * Johannes Brahms: ''Zigeunerlieder'' (2009) * Max Reger: ''Choral Music'' (2010)

References

External links

Andrew-John Smith / Discography

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Andrew-John English classical organists British male organists English choral conductors British male conductors (music) Living people 21st-century British conductors (music) 21st-century organists 21st-century British male musicians Year of birth missing (living people) Male classical organists