The first major post he held was as associate conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, a job he took in 1970. In 1975, he took the job of principal conductor with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. He stepped down in 1988, but has remained close to the orchestra as its Conductor Laureate.
In 1988, Davis became music director at Glyndebourne, where he met the American soprano Gianna Rolandi, whom he later married. Davis returned to the BBC in 1989 to become chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, where he held the post until 2000.
Davis became the music director and principal conductor of the Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2000. In 2005, he took on the post of Music Advisor to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, for a designated three-year period. In September 2006, Davis announced that he would relinquish this position with Pittsburgh after the 2007-2008 season.[1] In October 2007, Davis and the orchestra mutually agreed to terminate his contract early and for him not to conduct his scheduled Pittsburgh Symphony concerts in the 2007-2008 season, because of increased demands on Davis' schedule.[2]
