LaDonna Smith

Who is LaDonna Smith?

LaDonna Smith is an American avant garde musician from Alabama. She is a violinist, violist, and pianist. Since 1974 she has been performing free improvisational music with musicians such as Davey Williams, Gunther Christmann, Anne Lebaron, Derek Bailey, Eugene Chadbourne, Misha Feigin, Michael Evans, David Sait, Jack Wright, John Russell, Sergey Letov, Toshi Makihara, Andrew Dewar and many other of the world's major improvisers. As a performer, she has toured the USA, Canada, Europe, including Russia and Siberia, China and Japan. Her music is documented on dozens of CD and LP recordings, including the obscure Say Daybew Records - of Fred Lane & the Debonaires. An active organizer, she produced numerous concerts in Alabama and the Southeast, including the Birmingham Improv Festival. She is an educator and serves on the Board of Directors of I.S.I.M., the International Society of Improvised Music. In 1976, LaDonna Smith co-founded TransMuseq Records, in collaboration with Davey Williams. In 1980, the improvisor magazine began as an extension of I.N., the Improvisor's Network, a grass-roots organization that attempted to connect improvising musicians across the USA, founded at that time in New York City. LaDonna is currently editor-in-chief and publisher of the improvisor, which now exists on the web at "www.the-improvisor.com".