Michael Kent Smith

American composer and musician Michael Kent Smith can trace his ancestors back to their arrival in Jamestown in the 1600s and his musical stylings have seen multiple evolutions while remaining quintessentially American. Michael’s talents have not gone unnoticed--from being voted Chicago’s Best Guitarist in the 1980’s, winning the Outstanding Soloist award at the Midwest Jazz Festival, to becoming a top-five finalist in the Blues division of the Yamaha “Six String Theory” competition in 2011.

After seeing a performance featuring Andres Segovia, George Benson, and Chet Atkins he realized that there were seemingly infinite possibilities for styles of guitar playing, he delved into classical, jazz, folk, world, and new age music.

Michael has toured Europe, Mexico, Africa, and the United States as a featured performer. He has played the Kennedy Center, The International Festival of World Music in Mexico City, and The International Guitar Festival, among many other events and venues.
He has released three solo albums: “After the Harvest” in 2002, “Beauty Without Warning” in 2005, and "La Esperanza Sigue" in 2010. Smith is also a painter and printmaker and his work can be seen on the covers of all of his CDs.
His more recent music has seen him experimenting with electronics and various folk instruments, creating layered compositions with nods to classical, Celtic, Spanish, jazz, and ambient music. He lives in Querétaro, Mexico, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.