David was a member of the MU for 54 years, having joined in 1972.
The oboe community has lost one of its truly great characters with the untimely death of David Presly, who enjoyed a career at the pinnacle of the British orchestral scene for many decades.
Hailing from Aberdeenshire, he studied at the Royal College of Music (RCM) with Michael Winfield, among others, where he first met his wife, Maura. He subsequently joined the BBC Training Orchestra in Bristol before spending three years as Principal Oboe with Scottish Ballet.
In 1977, he secured the position of Second Oboe with the Philharmonia Orchestra, contributing to that great wind section of the 1970s and 1980s under the inspiring, if somewhat intimidating, direction of Riccardo Muti.
A joyous zest for life
He then moved to the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in 1987, and for the next 33 years, until his retirement in 2020, he set the highest standards as a second oboist par excellence.
We, his colleagues, benefited not only from his astonishing playing and calm expertise, but also from the joyous zest for life that seemed to be his default setting. Sitting next to him was always such fun. His wit and timing were of the highest order, and his unfailing ability to complete The Times crossword, which would remain untouched on his stand until he suddenly produced his pencil and completed the grid in one fell swoop, was the stuff of legend.
His great passion for cycling led to some astonishing feats. He rode coast to coast across the USA (where he was adopted by a chapter of Hell's Angels... of course!), from south to north of India, and from Colombia to Brazil, all on his Brompton (!).
On a road bike, he also completed several of the routes of the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España. He cycled with many orchestral colleagues over the years, including the Royal Opera House (ROH) group known as 'Raleigh-ntando'... and was wonderfully entertaining company as well as the driving force behind these trips.
Tragically, he was riding the route of this year's Tour when he was involved in the accident that took his life in Barcelona.
He leaves behind not only his beloved wife, Maura, sons Andrew and Colin, daughter-in-law Ami, granddaughter Zuri – to whom he was utterly devoted – but also so many of us, his colleagues and friends, who mourn his loss but are so profoundly grateful to have known this precious gem of a man.
David joined the MU in 1972. This tribute has been written by his colleague and friend Alan Garner, Principal Cor Anglais at the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.