Oliver Knussen (Stuart Oliver Knussen, Glasgow, Scotland, June 12, 1952 – 8 July 2018) was a Scottish composer and conductor. He began composing at about the age of six, but it was an ITV programme about his father's work with the London Symphony Orchestra that prompted the commissioning for his first symphony (1966-1967). Aged 15, Knussen stepped in to conduct his symphony's première at the Royal Festival Hall, London, on 7 April 1968 after István Kertész fell ill.