Nelson Cooke

Australian cellist and pedagogue. Born 21 December 1919 in Bellbird, New South, Wales, Australia - Died 7 February 2018. After service in the Second World War interrupted his early career with The Sydney Symphony Orchestra, he travelled to London for lessons with Pablo Casals and first played in the Philharmonia Orchestra as 4th Cello, before winning the Principal Cello job with the London Symphony Orchestra in 1959, making him the first Australian cellist at the orchestra (1961-1968). He later held the same position with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1968, Cooke began teaching at the University Of South Florida. In 1970, he became principal cellist for The Florida Orchestra. He later became Head of Strings at the Canberra School Of Music and in the 1990s, he worked as a music teacher at the Melbourne University. In 2011, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the New Years Honours List.