Processional (1999)

Robert Edward Smith (b. 1946) — Processional (1999) for organ

Robert Edward Smith (b. 1946) is an American composer and harpsichordist. Educated at the Juilliard School (with Bronson Ragan) and at the Mannes College of Music (with Sylvia Marlowe), Smith maintained an active career as a harpsichord performer, composer, liturgical musician, and teacher. Smith was the first person since the 18th century to perform the complete harpsichord works of François Couperin. In 1979, he was appointed Composer in Residence at Trinity College Chapel (Hartford, Connecticut). Smith held numerous positions as director of music in churches throughout New Jersey and Connecticut. From 1992–2011, he served on the faculty of the Hartt School (University of Hartford, Connecticut) where he taught harpsichord and continuo realization. Smith’s output as a composer includes works in numerous genres. In addition to the expected extensive amount of keyboard and choral music, there are works for orchestra and chamber forces, and an opera, “A Place of Beauty,” about the life of Isabella Stewart Gardner. (Visit: robertedwardsmith.com)