A Newark-born musician has retired from an orchestra — after four decades of playing music around the world.
Rob Shepley, of Newark, has retired from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra after 40 years.
Rob was born in Newark in 1960 and studied the violin at Grove comprehensive school from the age of thirteen, taught by Anthony Foster who was a well renowned teacher in Nottinghamshire.
This led to him training in the Nottinghamshire County Youth Orchestra under conductor Christopher Adey, touring with them to Rome where the orchestra received the honour of an audience with Pope John Paul II.
Rob then went to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, in London, where he took up playing the viola, afterwards joining the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra viola section in 1984.
Rob said: “Well the 40 years have flown by with many memories of wonderful concerts all around the world including two tours of China and Japan, but for me the stand out tour was playing in Prague before the iron curtain came down.
“The place was grey and sombre but when we returned later after the Berlin Wall came down the whole place was full of colour. We were the very first foreign orchestra to play The Prague Spring festival which was a huge honour. I have loved playing in the Royal Albert Hall in the proms and many other occasions.
“I played in bands around Nottinghamshire back in my youth so I naturally played guitar, banjo and mandolin with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra too. A memorable event was the summer pops in the 1990s on Liverpool’s famous Albert Dock in a massive circus tent playing the theme from Concerto Aranjuez on solo guitar with José Carreras singing and Carl Davis conducting.”
While his time with the orchestra has come to an end, music and performance will continue to take centre stage in Rob’s life.
He added: “I’m certainly not giving up playing music, just my full-time post in the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. I will continue playing with my string quartet, the Ensemble of St Luke’s, and indulging my passion for the music of Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt on violin and guitar.”
