String Virtuoso

Edward Francis-Smith

Biography

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 aged 12. He continued to study all things double bass with Thomas 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 the London Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also had principal experiences with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Welsh National Opera, as well as assistant principal experience with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, Edward was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra from 2013 to 2016.

As a chamber musician he has performed at the International Musicians Seminar, Prussia Cove. The subsequent tour across South West England, featuring the Dvořák 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.

Double Bass

Tutorial

  • Verdi — Falstaff: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass

    Orchestral Tutorial

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  • Verdi — Othello: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass

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  • Bruckner — Symphony No. 7: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 1 of 2 (Mov. 1)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Bar 123)

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  • Bruckner — Symphony No. 7: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 2 of 2 (Mov. 1)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Bar 363)

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  • Britten — Peter Grimes: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 11)

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  • Humperdinck — Hansel and Gretel: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass

    Orchestral Tutorial (Bar 148)

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  • Strauss — Der Rosenkavalier: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 1 of 2 (Act. 2)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 102)

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  • Strauss — Der Rosenkavalier: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 2 of 2 (Act. 2)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 154)

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  • Wagner — Die Walküre: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 1 of 4 (Act. 1)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 16)

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  • Wagner — Die Walküre: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 2 of 4 (Act. 2)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 77)

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  • Wagner — Die Walküre: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 3 of 4 (Act. 2)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 89)

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  • Wagner — Die Walküre: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 4 of 4 (Act. 2)

    Orchestral Tutorial (Figure 98)

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  • Verdi - Rigoletto: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 1 of 2

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  • Verdi - Rigoletto: Tutorial with Edward Francis-Smith, Double Bass. Part 2 of 2

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