Michael Kent Smith is a composer and painter who allows his work in both mediums to influence each other. In his music he uses modern as well as traditional and folk instruments, performing on them and taping the various strands together into vivid, shimmering music. Smith has toured Europe and Mexico and performs frequently around the United States with concerts at such notable venues as the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., the Chicago Cultural Center, the International Festival of World Music in Mexico City and the International Guitar Festival in Zihuatanejo.

He earned a Bachelor of Music from Elmhurst College and has studied classical guitar with Paul Herrmann, fingerstyle guitar with Martin Simpson, jazz improvisation with Richard Medel, composition with Howard Krueger and flamenco with Manuel Lozano in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. He was the principal composer in Pong Unit, the ensemble fronted by poet Marc Smith, inventor of the Poetry Slam. In addition Michael Kent Smith has won the Outstanding Soloist award at the prestigious Midwest Jazz Festival and was voted Chicago’s Best Guitarist in 1989. He has released two CDs, “After the Harvest” in 2002 and “Beauty Without Warning” in 2005.

Michael Kent Smith Website:
www.michaelkentsmith.com

Michael Kent Smith MySpace page:
www.myspace.com/michaelkentsmith