Steve Shipps

Stephen Shipps (b. 1952) is an American violinist, concertmaster, former music educator, and convicted criminal. He taught at The University Of Michigan between 1989 and 2019, retiring after multiple accusations of sexual misconduct. In October 2020, Shipps was arrested at his Ann Arbor home on two charges of transporting a minor across state lines to procure sexual activities. In April 2022, Stephen Shipps was sentenced to five years, incarcerated at FCI Elkton prison in Ohio. Shipps earned his B.M. and M.M. degrees at Indiana University after studying with Josef Gingold and further trained with Ivan Galamian and Sally Thomas (5) at the Meadowmount School and with Franco Gulli at Academia Chigiana in Siena, Italy. Steve Shipps began his stage career as a member of The Cleveland Orchestra and later served as an associate concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and concertmaster at the Dallas Opera Orchestra, Omaha Symphony Orchestra, and Nebraska Sinfonia. As a soloist, Shipps performed with symphony orchestras of Indianapolis, Seattle, and Ann Arbor, as well as The Piedmont Chamber Orchestra and Madeira Festival Orchestra. He recorded on American Gramaphone, Bay Cities, RIAS Berlin, Hessischer Rundfunk, Melodiya/Russian Disc, and other international labels. Before his infamous tenure at UM, Shipps taught on the faculties of UNC School of the Arts and Banff Centre For The Arts in Canada and gave annual masterclasses at The Colburn School, Los Angeles, CA. Stephen Shipps established and directed the Cambridge International String Academy at Trinity College in Cambridge, UK.