John F Smith has a distinguished career in music. After studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 1968 -1971, he joined the English National Opera orchestra in 1974 and remained there, as Principal Tuba, for almost 20 years.
In 1994, he became a full-time official of the British Musicians’ Union (BMU) and was promoted to Assistant General Secretary (Media) in 1997. In December 2002, John was elected General Secretary of the BMU, a position he held until he retired in July 2017.
John has been President of the International Federation of Musicians (FIM) since 2004. This role includes representing musicians’ interests in discussions with organisations such as UNESCO, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), the ILO and the European Parliament and Commission.
John was a past President of the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) and was a member of the UK Trades Union Congress (TUC) General Council and Executive Committee. He is also a former Chairman of the Trustees of the Royal Society of Musicians. He was appointed Chair of the UK Collective Management Organisation PPL Chair in 2016.
In January 2018, he was the recipient of the Association of British Orchestras’ Special Award for his contribution to British Orchestras. In 2020, HRH Queen Elizabeth II appointed him an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to music.
