Tributes as top conductor Davis dies aged 80

BRITISH conductor Sir Andrew Davis has died at the age of 80, his agent confirmed.

Sir Andrew, who was one of the longest-serving chief conductors of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, had been suffering from leukaemia, his agent Jonathan Brill said yesterday.

The esteemed conductor had been managing the disease for between one-and-a-half to two years, but it became acute shortly after his

80th birthday on

February 2.

Sir Andrew was principal conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1975-88; chief conductor of the BBC Symphony

Orchestra from 19892000; Glyndebourne Festival Opera music director 1988-2000 and held the honorary title of Conductor Emeritus from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

On X, the Royal Opera House paid tribute to Sir Andrew and said: “We are saddened to hear of the death of conductor Sir Andrew Davis.

“In a career spanning over five decades, he was the artistic leader of several of the world’s most distinguished opera and symphonic institutions including @ BBCSO and @ glyndebourne.”

A follow-up post said: “He made his Royal Opera debut in 1983 conducting Der Rosenkavalier and last conducted Capriccio (in concert) in 2013.”

Sir Andrew was born in 1944 in Hertfordshire and he was an organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge before he took up conducting. In 1992, he was created a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) and in

1999 he was knighted in the New Year Honours List.

Concert pianist Angela Hewitt posted on X: “We last played together in February 23 in Manchester. He was not well, but when he conducted it was full of life and precision.”