WE ARE
Committed to Opera
Double bassist Edward Francis-Smith is a member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York City. Born in Cornwall in 1996, he became a student of Thomas Martin age 12. He continued to study all things double bass with Mr. Martin at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire until 2016 when he gained a place at the elite Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. At Curtis he had the opportunity to learn with Harold Robinson and Edgar Meyer for two years before graduating in 2018.
Edward has performed and toured with numerous British orchestras including London Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He also has principal experiences with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Welsh National Opera and as assistant Principal with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, Edward was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra from 2013-2016.
As a chamber musician he has performed at the International Musicians Seminar, Prussia Cove. The subsequent tour across South West England, featuring the Dvorak Quintet and Rossini duo for cello and bass, attracted critical acclaim. He has also appeared as soloist with orchestra performing the Koussevitzky bass concerto and is the dedicatee of British composer Andrew Wilson’s Concerto for Double Bass and Strings.
In April 2018 Edward became the newest member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York under maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin.
