He may never have achieved the glamorous status of Herbert von Karajan or Simon Rattle but Edward Downes was among the truly great conductors of the 20th century.
He was a champion of Verdi and conducted 25 of his 28 operas.
Russian repertoire was another forte — Downes worked alongside Shostakovich himself at the 1963
performances at Covent Garden of Katerina Ismailova and conducted the Royal Opera premiere of Prokofiev's The Fiery Angel in 1992.
Quite why a conductor of his outstanding talents was not accorded the prestige of the major
international houses and record companies is a mystery.
Tragically, in his latter years, Downes's ability to conduct was compromised by near-blindness. But he will be remembered as one of
those musicians whose talents immeasurably outstrip their celebrity.