Praised by The Strad as “a consummate communicator of the new virtuosity,” Wilhelmina Smith’s recent recording of solo works by Salonen and Saariaho (Ondine) and solo works by Per Nørgård and Poul Ruders (Ondine) have earned praise from reviewers including BBC and Gramophone, with her current 2025 release (Azica) of solo cello works by Mohawk composer Dawn Avery attracting international attention. Her recording of Saariaho’s Sept Papillons is featured in the New York Times’ “5 Minutes That Will Make You Love the Cello.” 

Wilhelmina Smith was awarded a 2015–2016 McKnight Artist Fellowship for Performing Musicians. She made her solo debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra while a student at the Curtis Institute of Music and was a prizewinner in the Leonard Rose International Cello Competition. She has been soloist with orchestras internationally, and has performed recitals across the US and Japan. 

She has been a guest artist with the Philadelphia and Boston Chamber Music Societies and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and is a founding member of Music from Copland House and Variation String Trio. She has performed regularly in festivals such as the Marlboro Music Festival and Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, and is founder and Artistic Director of Salt Bay Chamberfest.

Wilhelmina Smith’s recent music video projects connecting music and environment include:

Northern Landscapes in Music (2022), River Muse: Music and the Metaphor of the River (2021–22), and Harmony on Land and Sea: Finding Music in an Exalted Maine Landscape (2020).