John Stafford Smith (bapt. 30 March 175021 September 1836) was a British composer, church

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

, and early

musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some m ...

. He was one of the first serious collectors of manuscripts of works by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

. Smith is best known for writing the music for " The Anacreontic Song", which became the tune for the American patriotic song "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the b ...

" following the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

, and in 1931 was adopted as the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

of the United States.

Early life and education

Smith was baptised in Gloucester Cathedral, England, on 30 March 1750, the son of Martin Smith, organist of Gloucester Cathedral from 1743 to 1782. He attended the Gloucester cathedral school, where he became a boy-singer. He furthered his career as a choir boy at the Chapel Royal, London, and also studied under Dr. William Boyce.

Career

By the 1770s he had gained a reputation as a composer and an organist. He was elected as a member of the select

Anacreontic Society The Anacreontic Society was a popular gentlemen's club of amateur musicians in London founded in the mid-18th century. These barristers, doctors, and other professional men named their club after the Greek court poet Anacreon, who lived in the 6th ...

which boasted amongst its membership Samuel Johnson,

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the English writer ...

and Sir Joshua Reynolds. In the 1770s, Smith composed music for the society's constitutional song entitled "

To Anacreon in Heaven "The Anacreontic Song", also known by its incipit "To Anacreon in Heaven", was the official song of the Anacreontic Society, an 18th-century gentlemen's club of amateur musicians in London. Composed by John Stafford Smith, the tune was later used ...

" (The Anacreontic Song). The words were by Ralph Tomlinson, the president of the society, and were inspired by the 6th-century BC Greek lyric poet,

Anacreon Anacreon (; grc-gre, Ἀνακρέων ὁ Τήϊος; BC) was a Greek lyric poet, notable for his drinking songs and erotic poems. Later Greeks included him in the canonical list of Nine Lyric Poets. Anacreon wrote all of his poetry in the ...

, who wrote odes on the pleasures of love and wine. The song became popular in Britain and also America following the establishment of several Anacreontic Societies there. Smith never married. Smith later became a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1784, organist for the Chapel Royal in 1802 and

Master of the Children Master of the Children is a title awarded to an adult musician who is put in charge of the musical training, and in some cases the general education (which sometimes gets offered as a priceless perk to recruit the best singers) of choir boy (or si ...

in 1805. He also became lay-vicar of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

. He was organist at the

Three Choirs Festival 200px, Worcester cathedral 200px, Gloucester cathedral The Three Choirs Festival is a music festival held annually at the end of July, rotating among the cathedrals of the Three Counties (Hereford, Gloucester and Worcester) and originally featu ...

held at Gloucester in 1790. He met and worked with Joseph Haydn during the famous composers London visit. Smith is considered to be the first Englishman to be a serious antiquarian and

. He began by publishing ''A Collection of English Song'' in 1779, which musicologist

Nicholas Temperley Nicholas Mark Temperley (August 7, 1932 – April 8, 2020) was an American musicologist of English background. He is known for his pioneering work in British music studies. Education and Career Born in Beaconsfield, United Kingdom, Temperley at ...

called "perhaps the first scholarly edition printed in England." Smith's library included the ''Old Hall Manuscript'', Drexel 4175, as well as a copy of ''Ulm Gesangbuch'' from 1538 that had belonged to

. He also collected works that dated back to the 12th century including some

Gregorian chants Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainchant, a form of monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed mainly in western and central Europe durin ...

. His publication ''Musica Antiqua'' (1812) included musical scores of works by

Jacob Obrecht Jacob Obrecht (also Hobrecht; 1457/8

Adrian Willaert Adrian Willaert ( – 7 December 1562) was a Flemish composer of High Renaissance music. Mainly active in Italy, he was the founder of the Venetian School. He was one of the most representative members of the generation of northern composers ...

, Jacob Clemens and

Cristóbal de Morales Cristóbal de Morales (c. 1500 – between 4 September and 7 October 1553) was a Spanish composer of the Renaissance. He is generally considered to be the most influential Spanish composer before Tomás Luis de Victoria. Life Cristóbal de Mo ...

with historical notes on each piece. According to Vincent Duckles, Smith's major contribution was "to direct the attention of his readers to the importance of source studies."

Death

Smith died in 1836 at the age of eighty-six. He was buried at St Luke's Church, Chelsea, and has a memorial plaque in Gloucester Cathedral, above which are displayed the US and UK's flags. It is often said that Smith's death was caused by a grape-pip lodged in his windpipe. According to

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...

the ancient Greek lyric poet

, after whom the

is named (and hence Smith's most famous piece), died when he was choked by a grape-stone.

Legacy

National anthem of the United States

In 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote the poem " Defence of Fort M'Henry" (later re-titled, "The Star-Spangled Banner") which was later set to the tune of "Anacreon", a piece composed by Smith. The US Congress officially designated this song as the US

in 1931.

References

External links

* * * *
Free John Stafford Smith sheet music
from the Ball State University Digital Media Repository {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, John Stafford 1750 births 1836 deaths 18th-century British composers 18th-century male musicians 19th-century British composers 18th-century classical composers 18th-century English people 19th-century classical composers 19th-century English people British classical composers British male classical composers British classical organists British male organists British musicologists Burials at Gloucester Cathedral Classical-period composers Gentlemen of the Chapel Royal Glee composers Musicians from Gloucestershire National anthem writers People educated at the King's School, Gloucester People from Gloucester 18th-century keyboardists 19th-century organists British antiquarians The Star-Spangled Banner Masters of the Children of the Chapel Royal 19th-century British male musicians Male classical organists