Born in Kansas, USA, Robert Dean Smith studied at Pittsburg (Kansas) State University with Margaret Thuenemann, at the Juilliard School in New York City with Daniel Ferro, and with Professor Janice Harper in Europe. Like many dramatic tenors, he began his career as a baritone and sang for several years in German opera houses. His excellent training and stage versatility allow him to sing a wide variety of repertoire in many different languages and styles.
He made his debut at the Bayreuth Festival in 1997 as Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, returning as Tristan, Lohengrin, and Siegmund in Die Walküre. Additional engagements include performances with Munich’s Bavarian State Opera, Wiener Staatsoper, La Scala in Milan, Paris Opéra Bastille, MET Opera New York, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Dresden State Opera, Covent Garden London, San Francisco Opera, Teatro Real Madrid, Gran Teatre de Liceu Barcelona, Theatre du Capitole Toulouse, Zürich Opera House and New National Theatre Tokyo.
He has performed in concert with the Royal Concertgebouworkest Amsterdam, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Bayerische Rundfunkorchester, Bayerische Staatsorchester Munich, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Rome, the Staatskapella Berlin, Orchestre de Paris, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony, Hamburg Symphoniker, Symphonica Toscanini, Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, the SWR Radio Orchestra, Monte-Carlo Orchestre Philharmonique, and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.
Robert Dean Smith’s CD recording on Arte Nova of Wagner scenes has been awarded the Orphée d’Or by the Académie du Disque Lyrique.
