Craig Smith

Craig Smith, born January 31, 1947, in Lewiston, Idaho, was an American conductor known for his work in Baroque music. He began studying piano at age four and later took up the flute. In 1965, Smith enrolled at Washington State University, where he discovered opera production. After moving to Boston, he was hired as choir director at Emmanuel Church in 1968 and founded Emmanuel Music two years later, dedicated to performing Johann Sebastian Bach's sacred cantatas. Smith conducted hundreds of concerts with this group, including operas by Handel and premieres of John Harbison's works. He collaborated frequently with stage director Peter Sellars and served as permanent guest conductor at La Monnaie in Brussels from 1988. Smith's recordings include Worship (1988), Songs to the Father of Life (1989), and Echoes of Innocence (1991). He died in Boston on November 14, 2007, from heart disease and diabetes-related kidney failure.