Daniel Smith

Daniel Smith’s passion for music is irrepressible. He is the only conductor named Laureate in four major international conducting competitions, among them UNESCO’s International Conducting Competition honouring Grzegorz Fitelberg (where he was also awarded the Gold Baton and the Orchestra’s Choice Prize) and the Sir Georg Solti International Conducting Competition. The first Australian to conduct the Mariinsky Orchestra, Smith was subsequently featured in TIME International. Soon after, he was appointed Direttore Principale Ospite of Teatro Carlo Felice, Genova.

On the symphonic podium, Smith is valued for structural clarity, rhythmic authority and refined orchestral colour. He has guest-conducted the Czech Philharmonic, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, Filharmonia Narodowa (Warsaw), hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony) and the New Japan Philharmonic, with appearances at the Mozarteum Festspiele, Estate Musicale Chigiana Siena, Aspen Music Festival and Stars of the White Nights.

In opera, Smith, winner of the Mancinelli International Opera Conducting Competition, specialises in the Italian operatic tradition, drawing on five years with Franco Zeffirelli and Alberto Zedda. Engagements include the Rossini Opera Festival, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Teatro di San Carlo, Den Norske Opera & Ballett, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Greek National Opera and Opera Australia, including productions by Damiano Michieletto.

Premieres (world and national) include: Alfredo Casella’s Symphony No. 2; Bedřich Smetana’s Má vlast (new critical edition); Giorgio Battistelli’s Ötzi; Fazıl Say’s Flute Concerto; John Adams’ Violin Concerto.

A distinctive strand of Smith’s work is a long-running association with Niccolò Paganini in Genova, including season-opening programmes and performances of Paganini’s violin concertos on the composer’s own violin, Il Cannone.

Based in Italy for more than two decades, Smith studied at the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana Siena, with further study at Trinity College London, the University of Music Bratislava, the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen. He appears regularly on prime-time television, pairing media work with hands-on educational programmes for young musicians and first-time audiences.

Recognised in Italy as an Australian Cultural Ambassador, Smith champions Australian and Indigenous music through a longstanding collaboration with didgeridoo virtuoso William Barton. He also founded The Daniel Smith Gift of Music Foundation, which provides concert tickets to people experiencing financial hardship or accessibility barriers.