BREAKING: Noted American Conductor Lawrence Leighton Smith Is Dead at Age 77

Classicalite just received this bad news from the Colorado Springs Philharmonic:

"It is with extreme sadness that the Colorado Springs Philharmonic reports the death of Lawrence Leighton Smith, our beloved music director emeritus. Smith died at home on Friday, October 25, 2013 in the company of his family at the age of 77 from complications of Binswanger's disease. Born April 8, 1936, Smith was one of the most respected American conductors of the 20th and 21st centuries, noted for his brilliant conducting career, which started in 1973 as a first prize winner of the Dmitri Mitropoulos Competition."

Smith had suffered a major heart attack on October 10 and was under the care of a hospice team. The Colorado Springs Philharmonic dedicated their October 19 concert to Smith, who was the ensemble's music director from 2000 to 2010.

The Philharmonic has established a Facebook Page, "The Friends of Lawrence Leighton Smith," where friends, students and admirers of Smith can post their stories about him and his life. Additional information will be posted to the page as it becomes available.

Smith had experienced declining health for the past few years, leading to his decision to step down from his post as music director of the Sunriver Music Festival in Oregon, a position he held for 24 years. Over the course of his long career, Smith served as music director of several orchestras, including the San Antonio Symphony, the Louisville Orchestra and the Oregon Symphony.

In 1986, he became the first American conductor to record with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra. The recordings that resulted, entitled the Moscow Sessions, featured the music of Glinka, Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich. Smith also recorded for the RCA label with the London Symphony and clarinetist Richard Stoltzman.

As music director of the Louisville Orchestra from 1982 to 1993, Smith and the orchestra recorded a number of new works by American contemporary composers .

Smith was also a prominent music educator, having led performances at both the Manhattan School of Music and Yale University. He served as conductor-in-residence and head of the orchestral conducting program at Yale, leading the Yale Philharmonia for ten years.

In keeping with Smith's wishes, there will not be a public funeral or memorial service. A celebration of Smith's life will be held in Colorado Springs the weekend of November 16-17, 2013.