EP 91 - Robert Oppelt (Principal Bassist with National Symphony Orchestra)

The Bass Shed Podcast

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Born in Richmond, Kentucky, he began playing the piano and violin as a youngster, then took up the double bass at 15. After two years of study, he won the concerto competition at Brevard Music Center with Dragonetti’s Concerto in A Major, and later was a two-time competition winner at North Carolina School of the Arts, where he was also the recipient of the Vittorio Giannini Memorial Award. Two enchanting summers were spent as a fellowship student at Tanglewood Music Center, the summer home of the illustrious Boston Symphony Orchestra.

In 1982, Mr. Oppelt was invited by the legendary cellist and NSO Music Director Mistislav Rostropovich to join the NSO bass section, becoming the orchestra’s youngest member at age 21. He was promoted to Assistant Principal Bass in 1984 and won his current position of section leader in 1996.

Mr. Oppelt has played concertos with the NSO and other orchestras. He also performs regularly with the Kennedy Center Chamber Players at the Kennedy Center. Other local appearances include the National Academy of Sciences, Library of Congress, Folger Shakespeare Theater, museums of The Smithsonian, and The White House for Presidents George H. W. Bush, Clinton, and Obama.

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