About

Now in her 12th year of being a New England resident, Marshunda Smith hails from Tennessee, and she comes from a family tradition of music. She started playing cello in 6th grade because of a teenage crush but ended up falling in love with the cello instead.

After obtaining her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Marshunda began teaching at a local high school. It was there that she discovered a love of conducting and teaching music!

So inspired, she embarked on finding a Master’s degree program in Orchestral Conducting that closely embodied her approach to music. She completed her Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting with an emphasis in Music Education at the University of Southern Maine, under the tutelage of Dr. Robert Lehmann. Other past conducting mentors include James Fellenbaum, Victor Yampolsky, Harold Farberman and Richard Rosenberg.

While in Maine, she conducted the Odeon Youth Orchestra as well as guest conducted during various music festivals in the state. Her musical pursuits kept pointing her to the Boston area, and so she eventually settled in the North Shore area, while continuing to still hold a presence in the Maine and New Hampshire area.

Marshunda is currently the co-principal cellist of the NSPO. She also performs with other area orchestras such as Portsmouth Symphony, Orchestra on the Hill, as well as different chamber ensembles in the area.

Marshunda was inspired to help co-found and conduct the No-Name Orchestra of Boston, granting musicians a chance to play a concerto or other solo work with a full orchestra. The conductor, soloist, and orchestra perform a work for the first time upon meeting each other with no rehearsals. No-Name Orchestra is now in its 3rd year since being founded and gives at least 3 performances each year around the Boston metro area.

Recently, Marshunda guest conducted the North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra and made history by becoming the orchestra's second female conductor in 20 years and the first African American to conduct the orchestra in its 70 year history!

All these things allow Marshunda to pursue her love of teaching, to inspire young musicians, and sharing her own quirky sense of fun with others. She teaches at the Waldorf School in Beverly, MA and holds a private music studio of violin, viola, and cello students. She resides in Wenham, MA with her cat Karen and can sometimes be spotted dancing around town.

She enjoys finding and performing new or undiscovered works for cello from unknown composers.

Music

Rachmaninoff, Vivaldi, Bach, Haydn, Vitali, Beethoven, Mozart, Charles Turner, Daniel Delaney, Tom Febonio, Constantino de Crescenzo, Paul Bazelaire, Charles Huerter, Goltermann, Piatti, Kodaly, Popper, Boccherini, Casals, Borowski,

Audio

Past groupmuses (2)