Michael Tilson Thomas Returns to the New York Philharmonic To Conduct MEDITATIONS ON RILKE and Schubert's Symphony No. 9

Michael Tilson Thomas returns to conduct the New York Philharmonic March 9-12 in four concerts, highlighted by the New York premiere of his Meditations on Rilke. Mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke, who premiered and recorded the cycle with Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony in 2019, and bass-baritone Dashon Burton are featured soloists. Also on the program is Schubert's Symphony No. 9, Great.

Tilson Thomas' acclaimed recording of his Meditations on Rilke and From the Diary of Anne Frank won a 2021 GRAMMY Award for Best Classical Compendium; Tilson Thomas' 12th GRAMMY Award. Of the performance of Mediations on Rilke, the Los Angeles Times lauded: "What Rilke, however, accomplishes in his poems, and what Tilson Thomas further improves upon theatrically and with no small debt to show business is the transformation of alienation into amazement." Furthermore, the Cleveland Plain Dealer declared that "Tilson Thomas distilled the aura of each poem, precisely capturing not only its imagery and dramatic shape but also the emotional sense of melancholy, awe, faith, or dread at its core." Listen to the album on YouTube or Spotify.

Meditations on Rilke is a song cycle for mezzo-soprano and bass-baritone, wherein Bohemian-Austrian lyrical poet and writer Rainer Maria Rilke's poems are set to musical reflections and motives Tilson Thomas has been thinking about for decades. For Tilson Thomas, this song cycle is deeply personal, rooted in his musical and familial heritage going back to his great-grandfather. "Music was a kind of lifelong journal, or confessional companion, into which new entries were always being added," he says of his family. "It is much the same for me, and in composing these Meditations on Rilke, whose poems are so varied in mood and character, my own lifelong 'musical journal' was a lens through which to view and express this poetry."

In Tilson Thomas' last performance with the New York Philharmonic-his first performance back on the podium since his diagnosis with glioblastoma multiforme, a type of brain cancer, currently in check-the New York Times lauded him as a "podium hero" and that the performance, which was a critic's pick, displayed "inspiring performances of demanding works." At age 77, he is focusing his energies equally on conducting and composing.

Michael Tilson Thomas is the Music Director Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony,
Conductor Laureate of the London Symphony Orchestra, and Co-Founder and Artistic Director Laureate of the New World Symphony. He is a twelve-time Grammy Award winner and has conducted the major orchestras of Europe and the United States.

Born in Los Angeles, he studied conducting and composition with Ingolf Dahl at the University of Southern California and, as a young musician, worked with artists including Igor Stravinsky and Aaron Copland. In his mid-20s, he became Assistant Conductor-and later Principal Guest Conductor-of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He subsequently served as Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic, Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra.
In 1987, he co-founded the New World Symphony, a postgraduate orchestral academy in Miami Beach dedicated to preparing young musicians of diverse backgrounds for leadership roles in classical music. He has worked with more than 1,200 NWS Fellows, many of whom have gone on to major musical careers.

He became Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony in 1995, ushering in a period of significant growth and heightened international recognition for the orchestra. He led SFS in championing contemporary and American composers alongside classical masters, and as Music Director Laureate, he returns to conduct the orchestra each season.
His discography includes more than 120 recordings, and his television work includes series for the BBC and PBS, the New York Philharmonic's Young People's Concerts and numerous televised performances. His profile Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is aired on PBS's American Masters series in fall 2020.

Throughout his career, he has been an active composer, with major works including From the Diary of Anne Frank, premiered with narrator Audrey Hepburn, and Meditations on Rilke. Both appear on SFS Media's recent Grammy Award-winning recording of his music. In September 2022 Avie Records released an album of solo piano works by John Wilson featuring the world premiere recording of Mr. Tilson Thomas' "Upon Further Reflection" for which the album is named.

He is an Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France, member of the American
Academies of Arts & Sciences and Arts & Letters, National Medal of Arts recipient and 2019 Kennedy Center Honoree.

The New York Philharmonic connects with millions of music lovers each season through live concerts in New York and around the world, as well as broadcasts, recordings, and education programs. The 2022-23 season marks a new chapter in the life of America's longest living orchestra with the opening of the reimagined David Geffen Hall and programming that engages with today's cultural conversations through explorations of HOME, LIBERATION, SPIRIT, and EARTH, in addition to the premieres of 16 works. This marks the return from the pandemic, when the NY Phil launched NY Phil Bandwagon, presenting free performances across the city, and 2021-22 concerts at other New York City venues.

The Philharmonic has commissioned and / or premiered important works, from Dvořák's New World Symphony to Tania León's Pulitzer Prize-winning Stride. The Orchestra has released more than 2,000 recordings since 1917, streams performances on NYPhil+, and shares its extensive history free online through the New York Philharmonic Shelby White & Leon Levy Digital Archives.

Founded in 1842, the New York Philharmonic is the oldest symphony orchestra in the United States, and one of the oldest in the world. Jaap van Zweden became Music Director in 2018-19, succeeding titans including Bernstein, Toscanini, and Mahler.