Smith, Cyril (James)
Smith, Cyril (James)
Smith, Cyril (James) , English pianist and teacher; b. Middlesbrough, Aug. 11, 1909; d. London, Aug. 2, 1974. He was a pupil of Herbert Fryer at the Royal Coll. of Music in London. He made his formal debut as a soloist in the Brahms second Piano Concerto in Birmingham (1929). In 1937 he married the pianist Phyllis Sellick, with whom he often appeared in works for 2 pianos from 1941; during a visit to the Soviet Union in 1956, he suffered a stroke that incapacitated his left arm; they subsequently gave concerts for Piano, 3-Hands (from 1957). He taught at the Royal Coll. of Music (1934–74). In 1971 he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. His autobiography was appropriately titled Duet for Three Hands (London, 1958). At the apex of his career, he won particular distinction for his performances of Rachmaninoff; he later commissioned new works and arrangements for Piano, 3-Hands.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire