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- Banks, Benjamin (1727?1795), musical instrument maker, was born at Salisbury on 14 July 1727, the third of the five children of George Banks, master butcher, and his wife, Barbery Huttoft. In 1741 Banks commenced a seven-year apprenticeship with his uncle William Huttoft, musical instrument maker and retail music dealer of Salisbury. In fact Huttoft is not recorded as a stringed instrument maker and it seems probable that Banks spent some time in the workshops of London makers such as Peter Wamsley of Piccadilly (1715??1751) or members of the Hill family, particularly Joseph Hill (1715?1784). There was also a later London connection with the Cahusac instrument retail business, for Banks's eldest daughter, Ann, married Thomas Cahusac in 1780. Banks used as his main London outlet the retail music firm of Longman and Broderip, whose instruments so labelled were made for them by others and may occasionally reveal Banks's signature or initials internally. Despite the attraction of London as a marketing base, Banks continued to maintain his workshop in Salisbury.
After two centuries Banks's reputation stands high, a number of authorities referring to the almost faultless workmanship, particularly in his copies made on the grand Amati model, after Nicolo Amati of Cremona. Banks himself is often referred to as ?the English Amati?. He also made instruments, supposedly mainly for the trade, on the highly arched Germanic Stainer model, which are less well regarded, and occasionally produced copies of Stradivari some decades before this became fashionable. Banks's sonorous cellos in particular remain highly prized by professional players and have long competed for favour with those of William (Royal) Forster of London (1739?1808), who enjoyed the patronage of the prince of Wales. Banks is thought to have produced violins, violas, and cellos in roughly even numbers, no doubt with the help of his sons. Examples of his work are to be found in the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum.
Banks married Ann Burtt in Salisbury on 8 August 1749 and they had nine children, two of whom, James and Henry, carried on the family business in Catherine Street, Salisbury, until that moved to Liverpool in 1811. Their output varies in standard. Banks died on 18 February 1795 and was buried with his wife at the church of St Thomas in Salisbury High Street. His tombstone bears the words ?Restored 1863 ? in memory of the most eminent English maker of stringed musical instruments?. [Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]
- Banks, Benjamin
(b Salisbury, 14 July 1727; d Salisbury, 18 Feb 1795). English violin maker. He lived and worked in Salisbury and, with Forster, did much to raise the standard of English violin-making in the second half of the 18th century. In 1741 he began an apprenticeship under his uncle, William Huttoft. Although it was intended to last seven years, the apprenticeship terminated abruptly on Huttoft's death in 1747. Banks's earliest known instrument is an English guitar branded, signed and dated 1757, and his first advertisement appeared in the Salisbury and Winchester Journal on 28 March 1757.
Benjamin Banks has been described as the ?English Amati?, and fine examples of his work exist to support this statement. He was the first English maker to recognize the importance of Stradivari's ?long pattern?, and his cellos and violins were made to ?Strad? specifications. His violas invariably have a Stainer influence. They are always on the small side, being never more than 39.7 cm along the back. English sycamore and pine were the basic woods employed on all Banks instruments, and his varnish is of excellent quality, ranging in colour from brown, through orange-brown and orange-red to deep red. The claim that stain was first laid on as a filler is without foundation. Signatures and initials are to be found in a variety of places, although not all instruments carry labels.
The bows that Banks and most other 18th-century makers sold were made by the Dodd family. In Banks's case they varied in quality and were branded banks, sometimes over the Dodd name. This was common practice, and may be assumed to have been carried out with the Dodd family's permission. Banks never made trade instruments, although he did allow his agents, Longman & Broderip, to place their brand over his on the instruments they sold; only a few of these still exist.
Benjamin Banks married Ann Burtt in 1749; they had ten children, including a pair of twins. Their eldest child, Ann (1750?94), married the music publisher Thomas Cahusac (i) in 1780. Benjamin's sixth child, James (b Salisbury, 10 Aug 1758; d Liverpool, 15 June 1831), was already producing instruments of high quality at the age of 17. His ability and drive have been given less than the notice they deserve by previous writers. Under his direction the string section of the firm blossomed profusely until the business was sold in 1811. His younger brother Henry (b Salisbury, 15 Dec 1770; d Liverpool, 16 Oct 1830), whose name is always linked with James, served an apprenticeship in the piano department of Longman & Broderip. In 1795 (the year of his father's death), Henry proudly advertised his skills in tuning ?stringed instruments of all kinds? in the Salisbury and Winchester Journal. Benjamin Banks's third child, Benjamin (b Salisbury, 15 Sept 1754; d Liverpool, 22 Jan 1820), also made violins. He worked in London for a short time, but his work tends to be heavy and somewhat clumsy.
In 1785 a fire devastated workshops opposite Banks's house and main workshop in Catherine Street, Salisbury. Although £200 worth of stock was destroyed, it had little effect on production for that year. In 1811 the business was sold to Alexander Lucas, and Henry and James moved to Liverpool. It would seem that the few instruments dated after the move were remaining stock that was brought up from Salisbury and labelled in Liverpool. [Grove Music Online]
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1727 - 1795 (67 years)