James Banks

They continued their father's business till 1811, when they sold up and went to Church Street, and later to Bold Street, Liverpool. Both were born in Salisbury; James about 1756, and Henry about 1770. The former died on June 15, 1831, and the latter on Oct. 16, 1830. Henry was a pianoforte tuner and repairer, and James a violin-maker. James was a very good workman, and ought to have done better than he did. He followed his father's model, and occasionally succeeded in producing much the same varnish. The tone cannot for a moment be compared with that of the old man. There is a metallic harshness about it which offends the ear, I am not sure that he did not bake his wood in some cases. I cannot otherwise account for the inferiority of the tone. The brothers left a number of unfinished instruments in the cellar of their Liverpool house, which were sold as they were, mostly to the trade. Labels : — JAMES AND HENRY BANKS, MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKERS AND MUSICSELLERS, SALISBURY, 1800 JAMES AND HENRY BANKS, SALISBURY, 1805 One of their violoncellos, made by both jointly in 1797, was amongst the exhibits in the South Kensington Museum, 1872. It was the property of Mr. C. J. Read, of Salisbury. It was said to be a well-finished instrument, with a moderately powerful tone of very good quality. Nothing that I have seen by any one of the sons could be said to possess a tone of any distinction. I have heard better many times in an ordinary trade fiddle. The father's mantle fell, not on the sons, but into the river, and was borne away by the flood.