John Smith has a distinguished career in music. After studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 1968 -1971, John Smith 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 Musicians’ Union (MU) and was promoted to Assistant General Secretary (Media) in 1997. In December 2002, John was elected General Secretary of the MU, a position he held until he retired in July 2017.
John has held prominent roles representing musicians on global platforms, including as President of the International Federation of Musicians (FIM). This role involves representing musicians’ interests in discussions with organisations such as UNESCO, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the European Parliament and Commission.
John has also held directorships of the British Copyright Council, UK Music, and the Educational Recording Agency. He is a past President of the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) and has been a member of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) General Council and a member of the TUC Executive Committee.
He became PPL Chair in 2016 and currently chairs the Trustees of the Royal Society of Musicians. He was awarded an OBE for services to music in 2020.