[This is an excerpt from the October 2020 issue of On KQED magazine.]
Think of the greatest composers, conductors and musical minds of our time and Michael Tilson Thomas, an icon in the Bay Area and around the world, tops the list. He was the San Francisco Symphony’s music director for 25 years (he recently became music director laureate). He’s also the co-founder and artistic director of the New World Symphony and conductor laureate of the London Symphony Orchestra. His list of accomplishments and accolades include eleven Grammy awards, appearances on more than 120 recordings, the National Medal of Arts and the 2019 Kennedy Center Honors, to name just a few.
I spoke with him recently on the day when Bay Area skies glowed orange from the fires (“almost biblical,” he noted) and learned more about his music and his life.
Tilson Thomas is featured in two upcoming shows on KQED 9. On Friday, October 23, at 9pm, we’ll air a new American Masters’ documentary Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is. And on Thursday, October 29, we’ll broadcast Metallica and the San Francisco Symphony: S&M 2, which focuses on symphonic renditions of Metallica fan favorites. If you’re interested in knowing more about him and his work, you don’t want to miss them. -- Ellyn Hament, Managing Editor of On KQED
How has the pandemic affected your work?
The San Francisco Symphony’s tour to New York and Europe and the rest of the orchestra’s season were cancelled. It’s hard because the members of the orchestra had been doing these pieces over many years and we were looking forward to enjoying each other’s company and having the pleasure of just being back in the national parks of symphonic culture. During this time, I want to do more composing and musical theater work. And I’m in touch with people and working on various projects.