Neil Smith

Neil's early studies took place in Manchester and London with Duarte and then later at Toronto University, Canada with Alirio Diaz and Leo Brouwer. On his return to the UK, he made his Wigmore debut. He followed this with tours and Proms Concerts with some of our finest orchestras and conductors including the CBSO under Sir Simon Rattle, the SNO under Sir Alexander Gibson and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. His first LP record Classical Guitar was featured Pick of the Month in two national magazines and two of his BBC Radio 3 broadcasts were featured as special repeats and his broadcast with John Turner on Recorder received the unusual accolade of two repeats. He has recorded for the Guitar Masters label and Devil Records, XLCR, Apoyo, Forsyths and the HLM (Holland) labels and has been a featured artist on radio in Europe and the USA. He has examined for the University of Wales, the Royal Northern College of Music and is a Fellow of The London College of Music. He has given masterclasses in the USA, Russia, Greece, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Canada, Italy and the Netherlands and has been a member of several international music juries. Neil has also taught for the world-famous Chetham's School in Manchester. His recent successes include a special appearance at Glamis Castle in August 2000 for the 100th birthday of Her Majesty The Queen Mother for an audience of 5,800. Not only has he played in such distinguished venues; he has also played for His Highness Sheikh Maktoum in Arabia and for His Excellency the Spanish Ambassador, H.E. the Colombian Ambassador and H.E. the Israeli Ambassador in addition to the film-star Elizabeth Taylor in Rome and a special recital for a Soviet tank division at the castle of Attila the Hun.