Jeffrey Tate

Sir Jeffrey Philip Tate CBE (28 April 1943 – 2 June 2017) was an English conductor. 
Tate was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire. He suffered from spina bifida since birth. He was raised in Farnham, Surrey. He studied at Cambridge University and at Christ's College, Cambridge.
Tate's international conducting début was with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City in 1979. In 1985, he was appointed the first principal conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra. He was named to the position of principal conductor of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden effective in September 1986, the first person in the House's history to have that title. He was principal conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra from 1991 to 1995. In 2005, he was appointed music director of the San Carlo Theatre of Naples, and served in the post through 2010.
Tate was openly gay. He was partners with German doctor Klaus Kuhlemann until his death in 2017. Tate was created a Knight Bachelor in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to British music overseas.
Tate died of a heart attack while performing at a concert in Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy on 2 June 2017 at the age of 74.