Collective

Born in Saint Petersburg. After completing music school as an external student with a specialty of alto domra, she enrolled in the N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov-named St. Petersburg Music College, where she was taught by Honored Artist of Russia Professor I.M. Fochenko. She continued her studies in the class of Honored Artist of Russia Professor N. N. Shkrebko, becoming the first graduate of the assistant-internship at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory named after N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov, specializing in alto domra. She actively performed as part of various orchestras and ensembles, and became a scholarship recipient of the Union of Concert Workers of St. Petersburg and the Muses of St. Petersburg Foundation. For the first time in St. Petersburg, as a performer on the alto domra, she twice became a laureate of the International Competition «Northern Cup».

Since 1998 she has been an artist of the Andreevsky Orchestra and a soloist of the group, and from 1998 to 2022 she was the concertmaster of the alto domras group. Svetlana Smolyar's work as a concertmaster was distinguished by her professionalism, meticulousness, and ongoing efforts to enhance her group's sound. At the initiative of the concertmaster, arrangements were created for solo group and orchestra.

Svetlana Smolyar is an alto domra player who represents the St. Petersburg school. Her unique approach to sound, virtuosity, and the breadth of the author's interpretation set her performance style apart. Original compositions and arrangements for the alto domra were premiered as part of the musician's interpretation. She performed solo and recorded with the State Academic Russian Orchestra named after V.V. Andreev performed with leading Russian groups (National Academic Orchestra of Folk Instruments of Russia named after N. P. Osipov, Governor's Orchestra of Russian Folk Instruments of the Vologda Region). New compositions for the alto domra and the author's orchestral arrangements for this instrument were made possible by her collaborations with composers E. Podgaits, M. Tsayger, E. Panchenko, and G. Zaitsev.

From 2006 to 2017 she taught at the St. Petersburg State Institute of Culture. One of its graduates is the soloist of the Andreevsky Orchestra, Ivan Amolin. Svetlana Smolyar’s pedagogical work is closely connected with scientific research activities. She publishes works and participates in forums and conferences on the theory and practice of performing on the domra. At the invitation of the educational center of Yu. Bashmet conducted a number of master classes in Russian cities.