Mary Térey-Smith

conductor / coach / musicologist

Hungarian-born conductor and musicologist Mary Térey-Smith trained at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest, studying conducting and composition with Janos Ferencsik, Ferenc Farka, Janos Viski and folk music with Zoltan Kodaly.

Upon graduation at the age of nineteen she was engaged as resident conductor of the Tatabânya Symphony Orchestra (1952-56) and worked as a part-time vocal coach for the Hungarian State Opera. Forced to leave the country following her participation in the 1956 Revolution, she immigrated to Montréal, Canada before accepting a position as coach and conductor at the Royal Conservatory Opera School (presently, University of Toronto, Opera Division). She undertook graduate studies in Vermont, MA, and Rochester, N.Y., and was awarded her Ph.D. in Musicology in 1971 by the Eastman School of Music.

From 1967 to 2001, Mary Térey-Smith was a Professor of Music at Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA, where she was the head of the musicology/music history programs, and music director for eight years of the Western Opera Studio. In 1970 she founded the University’s Collegium Musicum, a group that focused on 17th and 18th century vocal and instrumental repertory. This ensemble quickly developed an enviable reputation as one of the finest such university programs in the country. In addition to performances in the USA and Canada, Collegium Musicum toured Europe six times between 1990 and 2000, giving concerts in Italy, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Romania.

Térey-Smith’s activities as a musicologist focus on Baroque and early Classical operas in France (Rameau), Italy, Germany, Austria, Portugal and orchestral practice in opera accompaniment. She published numerous articles in various periodicals, edited music, wrote book reviews and contributed a number of essays for the New Revised Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2001). She has also served as conductor and artistic advisor for Capella Savaria in numerous recordings and concerts.

< August 2009 >