Conductor Kenneth Montgomery dead at age 79

Conductor Kenneth Montgomery died on Sunday at the age of 79, his partner announced. The Belfast-born conductor worked in the Netherlands for half a century and for many years served as the chief conductor of a top orchestra and a lauded choir which were featured prominently in broadcasts, the Radio Symfonie Orkest and the Groot Omroepkoor.

Montgomery died at home in Amsterdam.

Recently he conducted Joseph Haydn's L'isola Disabitata with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, with whom he frequently collaborated, and students from the Dutch National Opera Academy (DNOA). Shortly afterwards, he decided to put an end his career due to his health.

He started in the Netherlands with the Radio Kamerorkest and subsequently worked with the former De Nederlandse Operastichting, among others. He was the conductor for several operas performed on the Dutch broadcasting system.

Kenneth Montgomery has also been Principal Conductor of the Opera Northern Ireland, the Santa Fe Opera and the Ulster Orchestra and has performed at La Scala in Milan and other opera houses in Europe and North America.