Philip Sheppard (musician)
| Philip Sheppard | |
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Philip Sheppard
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| Background information | |
| Genres | Soundtrack, classical, rock |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, cellist |
| Instruments | cello, electric cello, conductor |
| Labels | Blue Snow, Universal, BMG Zomba |
| Associated acts | Unkle, Juliette Binoche, Akram Khan |
Philip Sheppard is a composer, virtuoso cellist and a pioneer of the electric cello. He is a professor at the Royal Academy of Music and has composed extensively for film, television and theatre. He has collaborated with major figures in pop music, has produced soundtracks for the BBC and for films. He recorded arrangements of all the world's 205 national anthems for the 2012 Olympics.
Sheppard trained in Cello and Composition at the Royal Academy of Music, during which time he specialised in contemporary music. He worked closely with Hans Werner Henze, Sir Michael Tippett and Luciano Berio during this time as a founder member of the Kreutzer String Quartet. Whilst a student, Sheppard made weekly appearances at the Spitz nightclub, playing entirely improvised concerts, sometimes featuring his Piano Quintet – formed with Keith Tippett. He collaborated with pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, who encouraged him to move away from a conventional musical environment, and pursue his composition. He went on to pioneer electro-acoustic improvisation joining the Smith Quartet and appearing regularly with the London Sinfonietta. After completing a fellowship, he was made a professor at the Royal Academy of Music where he is now a senior lecturer.
His early solo albums, 'The Glass Cathedral' and 'The Diver in the Crypt', featured new compositions devised for site-specific performances. The albums received rave reviews on release and are regularly played on Radio 3. The tracks feature a specially commissioned electric cello that has become a cornerstone of many of Sheppard's compositions. The albums attracted the attention of Scott Walker, who invited him to play at his Southbank Centre Meltdown Festival. They collaborated again on Pulp's album 'We Love Life' with Jarvis Cocker and after that on Walker's critically acclaimed album 'The Drift'. He has also arranged songs for Jarvis Cocker's solo album 'Jarvis', David Bowie and Suzanne Vega.
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