Bernard Smith

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about Bernard Smith the seventeenth-century organ maker. For Bernard Smith the Australian art historian, see Bernard William Smith.

"Father" Bernard Smith (c 1630 - 1708) was a German-born master organ maker in England in the late 17th century.

Smith served his apprenticeship in Germany before emigrating to England in 1660. He built an organ for the Chapel Royal and, in 1681, became the king's organ maker. Along with his hated rival Renatus Harris he was one of the two most prominent organ builders of the late 17th century.

The rivalry between Smith and Harris led to the famous Battle of the Organs in 1684, when both were bidding for the contract to build the new organ for the Temple Church, London. Each man erected an organ in the Temple Church and then hired prominent organists to demonstrate the superiority of their instrument. Smith hired John Blow and Henry Purcell as his organists and won the contest.