Colin Davis
Sir Colin Rex Davis, CH, CBE ( born September 25, 1927 in Weybridge, † April 14, 2013 in London ) was an English conductor.
He studied clarinet in London, but was then conductor. In 1967 he became chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, in 1971 he moved to the Royal Opera House. From 1983 to 1992 he headed the Symphony Orchestra of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. In 1993 he received the Karl Amadeus Hartmann Medal. In 1994 he conducted the choir and orchestra of the Academy of Music in Munich in a concert performance of The Magic Flute, including with Jonas Kaufmann as Tamino. From 1995 to 2007 he was principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra.
Davis worked from 1981 to 2013 with the Staatskapelle Dresden. This led in 1991 to an honorary conductor shaft and on May 9, 2013 at a memorial concert.
In addition to his interpretations of Mozart's work, Sir Colin was characterized primarily by recordings of works by Hector Berlioz and Jean Sibelius. He has also conducted several world premieres of works by the contemporary British composer Michael Tippett.