• Bramwell Tovey passed away on Tuesday at his home in Barrington, Rhode Island.
• From 2000 to 2018, Bramwell led the VSO as its longest-serving music director.
• Close friend and Bard on the Beach co-creator Christopher Gaze remembers him fondly.

Bramwell Tovey died at his home in Barrington, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, a day after celebrating his 69th birthday and surrounded by loved ones.

The longstanding conductor of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Bramwell Tovey, has passed away.

After celebrating his 69th birthday the previous day and his family at his side, Tovey passed away on Tuesday at his home in Barrington, Rhode Island.

At the time of his passing, Tovey served as the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra’s main conductor and artistic director. On Wednesday, the orchestra made a death announcement. He served as the BBC Orchestra’s principal conductor as well.

During his nearly two decades as the VSO’s director, Tovey led the orchestra to new heights, travelling the globe, receiving Grammy and Juno awards, and building the institution’s school of music, which now bears his name.

“His dedication and enthusiasm for building a strong community through music helped place the VSO at the heart of cultural life throughout the Lower Mainland,” said the Vancouver Symphony in a statement. From 2000 to 2018, Bramwell led the VSO as its longest-serving music director and was later appointed the orchestra’s music director emeritus.

“The world has lost an incredible musician, maestro, educator, activist, and giant of a human being,” said Angela Elster, president and CEO of the VSO. “We at the VSO and the VSO School of Music are shattered and heartbroken.”

Christopher Gaze, a close friend and the creator and director of Bard on the Beach, remembers him with affection.

“Bramwell was a truly great musician and burned bright across the firmament,” said Gaze. “He was greatly loved both here, across Canada, and around the world. He will be missed by music lovers far and wide.

“He was a dear and treasured friend … (and) was one of the finest raconteurs I have ever come into contact with.”

Gaze hosted many of Tovey’s concerts and he noted how the maestro “won his audiences over with his sparkling, insightful talks and his elegance and charisma. … I always knew that he should have been the one speaking.”

He finished simply: “I loved him and I will never forget him.”

“Bramwell was incredibly proud of and devoted to his family, and is survived by his children Ben, Jessica and Emmeline, his partner Verena De Neovel, his sisters, grandchildren, nieces and nephew,” said the Rhode Island Philharmonic in a release.

“Tovey certainly led an epic life. Born in East London, where his musical training began in Salvation Army bands, his talent took him from tuba, to piano, to conducting, and eventually attracted the attention of Leonard Bernstein, who described him as a ‘hero’.”

Tovey created a ground-breaking New Music Festival while serving as music director of the Winnipeg Symphony at the start of his conducting career. While with the VSO, he also served as the festival’s first host and conductor, as well as the principal guest conductor for the L.A. Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl.

In 2016, he travelled to Rhode Island, where he managed a number of artists’ stage debuts and demonstrated his commitment to diversity and contemporary composers, many of whom had premiere performances with the Rhode Island Philharmonic.

In May 2019, Tovey received a rare sarcoma diagnosis. After surgery at Dana Farber in Boston, he briefly recovered from cancer. In January, the cancer came back, and he never fully recovered.

“We are all heartbroken,” said the Rhode Island Philharmonic’s executive-director, David Beauchesne. “Bramwell Tovey was a dear friend and colleague, and a person of uncommon ability, warmth, humour, sincerity and kindness. The youngest student and most revered guest artist received the same level of his care and attention.”

The VSO and the Rhode Island orchestra are both creating memorial funds in Tovey’s honour, and the Rhode Island orchestra will dedicate its 2022–2023 season to his memory.