Born in Sydney Australia, Martin Smith studied at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole with Natalia Gutman and the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler with Eberhard Feltz. Martin has appeared as soloist throughout Europe, including recent performances with the Berlin Kammersolisten, Leipzig Philharmonic, Orchestre de Chambre de Lyon, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, RTÉ Symphony Orchestra, and RTS Symphony Orchestra Belgrade.
Martin has collaborated with musicians including Kolja Blacher, Leon Fleisher, Midori Goto, Leonadis Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma, Menahem Pressler, Heinrich Schiff and Tabea Zimmerman, and continues to work closely with leading composers including John Adams, Thomas Adès, Mats Larsson Gothe, György Kurtág and Salvatore Sciarrino.
As guest principal cellist, Martin has performed and toured with the Bavarian State Opera, BBC Symphony Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, NDR Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Philharmonia Orchestra London, Royal Opera Stockholm, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, SWR Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart, and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich.
Martin has appeared at leading festivals including IMS Prussia Cove, Musica Strasbourg, Pablo Casals Prades, Piatigorsky and Ravinia. He has been honoured with numerous awards including the Australian Music Foundation, the DAAD Künstlerpreis, ECHO Klassik, and the KPO Young Performer of the Year award. Martin has been a member of the Zafraan Ensemble in Berlin since 2012.