Nelson Ripley Cooke AM (21 December 1919 – 7 February 2018) was an Australian

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

who was principal cellist at the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

and

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, that performs and produces primarily classic works. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable ...

s during the 1950s and 1960s.

Career

Cooke was born in

Bellbird, New South Wales Bellbird is a town and locality in the City of Cessnock in the Hunter Region of New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subd ...

, Australia. He began playing the cello aged 8, having previously been a piano player. At one time, he was taught by

Jascha Gopinko Jascha Gopinko (15 December 1891 – 4 July 1980), born in Ukraine and later resident in Australia, was a violinist, conductor and teacher of string instruments. Life Gopinko was born in 1891 near Mogilev in Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empir ...

. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Cooke served in the

Australian Defence Force The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Forc ...

, during which time he visited Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. In 1949, Cooke travelled to the UK to be taught by

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

. Cooke was a principal cellist in the London Symphony Orchestra in the 1950s, making him the first Australian cellist at the orchestra. In the 1960s, he became principal cellist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1968, Cooke began teaching at the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...

. In 1970, he became principal cellist for the

Florida Orchestra The Florida Orchestra is an American orchestra based in the tri-city area of Tampa, Clearwater, Florida, Clearwater and St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg, Florida. It was founded as the Florida Gulf Coast Symphony upon the 1968 merger of the ...

. He later became head of strings at the

Canberra School of Music The ANU School of Music is a school in the Research School of Humanities and the Arts, which forms part of the College of Arts and Social Sciences of the Australian National University. It consists of four buildings, including the main School of ...

, and in the 1990s, he worked as a music teacher at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

. In 1988, Cooke founded the Riverina Summer School for Strings. Cooke retired from playing the cello at the age of 90. In 2011, Cooke was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM) in the

New Years Honours List The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooke, Nelson 1919 births 2018 deaths Australian classical cellists London Symphony Orchestra players Members of the Order of Australia Musicians from New South Wales Australian expatriates in the United Kingdom University of South Florida faculty Academic staff of the University of Melbourne