(Image: Scottish Opera)
Tributes have been paid to veteran Scottish tenor John Robertson, who has died at the age of 88.
Mr Robertson passed away on 15 October, Scottish Opera said.
His final appearance was in a concert performance of Turandot in 2014, 30 years after he had sung Emperor Altoum in the same opera.
Scottish Opera posted on social media: "As Turandot returns for the first time since John last sang it with us, he will be in all our hearts tonight, on Opening Night."
A founding member of Scottish Opera, Robertson made his debut in 1962 when he sang in the chorus of the company's first-ever production, Madama Butterfly.
William McCue as King Dodon,with John Robertson and Donas Maxwell as his sons.The Golden Cockerel, 1979 revival of 1975 Pountney (Image: Scottish Opera)
Across 52 years, he served the company in almost every way a singer can: in the chorus, in leading roles, in brand-new operas, and back in the chorus again, Scottish Opera said.
Born in Galashiels, he cut his teeth with the Edinburgh University Opera Club, conducted by fellow student Roderick Brydon, before performing with Edinburgh Grand Opera and Glasgow Grand Opera, singing roles such as Faust, Hoffmann, Don José and Nadir.
He was also a founder member of the Edinburgh Festival Chorus with Arthur Oldham.
In 1964, he sang his first solo role for Scottish Opera, Roderigo in Othello. Over the decades that followed came more than 60 roles: Tamino, Almaviva, Peter Quint, Albert Herring, a deeply moving Simpleton in Boris Godunov, and even the Witch in Hansel and Gretel.
He created roles in new Scottish operas by Iain Hamilton and Thea Musgrave, and toured with the company from Aberdeen to Stuttgart.
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Scottish Opera posted on social media: "He was the colleague everyone hopes for. He could learn one opera, rehearse another and perform a third in the same week, and he was always ready to step in at a moment's notice.
"He never studied music formally; he learned by standing in the wings, watching and listening. 'It's not my business to look at the audience,' he once said. 'I'm the character.'
"Many students at the RSAMD and the RNCM benefited from all he had learned, and he played a crucial role in the formation of NYCOS.
"Thank you, John, for every note. We will miss you very much. Our thoughts are very much with John's family."