Happy birthday, Michael Tilson Thomas!

Wishing a very happy 80th birthday to legendary American conductor and composer Michael Tilson Thomas! A frequent and favorite visitor to the podium for over 50 years, he has led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in Orchestra Hall, at the Ravinia Festival, on tour to Australia and in the recording studio.

Following 25-year-old Tilson Thomas’ CSO debut at the Ravinia Festival in July 1970, the headline in the Chicago Sun-Times raved, “Young conductor in brilliant debut.” The program was “as sophisticated as it was well played,” according to Robert C. Marsh.  “Thomas is a strong candidate to become a big name in a very short time [having] already mastered the art of understatement. He does not play down to his audience by underlining his interpretive decisions, but instead conveys the feeling that through his conducting we are in contact with the thought processes of the composer himself. It is wonderful to hear music played this way . . .”

After Tilson Thomas first appeared with the CSO in Orchestra Hall in May 1981, John von Rhein in the Chicago Tribune wrote, “Thomas’ interesting program achieved a welcome balance of the brainy and the accessible, the unusual and the familiar. . . . Thomas, who once was assistant to Pierre Boulez, retains some of that conductor’s ability to clarify line, texture and nuance without sacrificing a sensuous wash of vivid atmosphere.”

A complete list of Michael Tilson Thomas’ appearances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus is below.

July 12, 1970, Ravinia Festival
J.C. BACH Sinfonia for Double Orchestra in E-flat Major
HAYDN Symphony No. 60 in C Major
VARÈSE Intégrales
STRAVINSKY Suite from Pulcinella

August 1, 1970, Ravinia Festival
BACH Suite No. 4 in D Major, BWV 1069
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488
John Browning, piano
RUGGLES Sun-Treader
WAGNER Siegfried’s Rhine Journey, Siegfried’s Death and Funeral March and Brünnhilde’s Immolation from Götterdämmerung

May 21, 22, and 24, 1981, Orchestra Hall
BACH/Schoenberg Chorale Preludes (Schmücke dich, O liebe Seele and Komm and Gott Schöpfer, heiliger Geist)
IVES Symphony No. 2
STRAVINSKY The Firebird

July 22, 1982, Ravinia Festival
HAYDN Symphony No. 81 in G Major
BRUCH Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 26
Shlomo Mintz, violin
STRAVINSKY Symphony in Three Movements
RAVEL La valse

July 24, 1982, Ravinia Festival
BERLIOZ Overture to Benvenuto Cellini
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
Emanuel Ax, piano
STRAUSS Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30

August 7, 1983, Ravinia Festival
GERSHWIN An American in Paris
GERSHWIN Summertime; It Ain’t Necessarily So; and I Loves You, Porgy from Porgy and Bess
GERSHWIN Sweet and Low-Down
GERSHWIN Medley: But Not for Me, Love is Here to Stay, Embraceable You and Someone to Watch over Me
GERSHWIN Fascinatin’ Rhythm
GERSHWIN Second Rhapsody for Orchestra with Piano
Miichael Tilson Thomas, piano
GERSHWIN My Man’s Gone Now from Porgy and Bess
GERSHWIN The Man I Love
GERSHWIN Do It Again!
GERSHWIN Medley: Nice Work If You Can Get It, They Can’t Take That Away from Me, ‘S Wonderful, Swanee, Strike Up the Band
Sarah Vaughan, vocal
George Gaffney, piano
Andy Simpkins, bass
Harold Jones, drums

August 11, 1983, Ravinia Festival
JANÁČEK Suite from The Cunning Little Vixen
DEBUSSY La mer
TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23
Misha Dichter, piano

August 13, 1983, Ravinia Festival
BRAHMS Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80
BEETHOVEN Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61
Henryk Szeryng, violin
BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73

November 10, 11, and 12, 1983, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Symphonies of Wind Instruments
STRAVINSKY Apollon musagète
TCHAIKOVSKY Manfred, Op. 58

November 17, 18, and 19, 1983, Orchestra Hall
November 21, 1983, Uihlein Hall, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
IVES Symphony No. 3 (The Camp Meeting)
GERSHWIN/Tilson Thomas Nocturne for Lily Pons
Michael Tilson Thomas, piano
VARÈSE Arcana
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 15
Misha Dichter, piano

August 9, 1984, Ravinia Festival
GLINKA Overture to Ruslan and Ludmila
RACHMANINOV Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 30
Yefim Bronfman, piano
STRAVINSKY The Firebird

August 11, 1984, Ravinia Festival
DEBUSSY Incidental Music for King Lear
DEBUSSY First Rhapsody for Clarinet and Orchestra
Larry Combs, clarinet
TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet
DVOŘÁK Cello Concerto in B Minor, Op. 104
Yo-Yo Ma, cello

June 13, 14, and 15, 1985, Orchestra Hall
GRAINGER Arrival Platform Humlet from In a Nutshell
GRIFFES Clouds
CHABRIER Joyeuse marche
DEL TREDICI March to Tonality
GERSHWIN Second Rhapsody for Orchestra with Piano
Michael Tilson Thomas, piano
DELIUS On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring
RESPIGHI Feste romane
SOUSA New Mexico March

August 8, 1985, Ravinia Festival
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Four Pieces from Mlada
RACHMANINOV Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Misha Dichter, piano
STRAVINSKY The Rite of Spring

August 10, 1985, Ravinia Festival
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
Alicia de Larrocha, piano
TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 36

August 15, 1985, Ravinia Festival
IVES Thanksgiving and Forefathers’ Day from Holidays Symphony
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Marvis Martin, soprano
Florence Quivar, mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director

August 17, 1985, Ravinia Festival
MOZART Symphony No. 34 in C Major, K. 338
MOZART Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219
Cho-Liang Lin, violin
BARTÓK Concerto for Orchestra

May 1, 2, and 3, 1986, Orchestra Hall
May 5, 1986, Uihlein Hall, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
IVES The Unanswered Question
Adolph Herseth, trumpet
IVES Central Park in the Dark
MOZART Concerto for Violin No. 5 in A Major, K. 219
Young Uck Kim, violin
TCHAIKOVSKY Suite No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 43

May 8, 9, and 10, 1986, Orchestra Hall
IVES Symphony: New England Holidays
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
BARTÓK Three Village Scenes
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 97 (Rhenish)

July 24, 1986, Ravinia Festival
COPLAND Billy the Kid, Suite from the Ballet
SCHUBERT/Liszt Fantasy in C Major, D. 760 (The Wanderer)
Illana Vered, piano
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92

July 26, 1986, Ravinia Festival
BERLIOZ Overture to Benveunto Cellini
MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin
BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14a

February 19, 20, 22, and 24, 1987, Orchestra Hall
BRAHMS Tragic Overture, Op. 81
SIBELIUS Symphony No. 6 in D Minor, Op. 104
BRAHMS/Schoenberg Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25

February 26, 27, and 28, 1987, Orchestra Hall
WAGNER Prelude to Act 3 of Lohengrin
WUORINEN Piano Concerto No. 3
Garrick Ohlsson, piano
BARTÓK Concerto for Orchestra

December 3, 4, and 6, 1987, Orchestra Hall
REICHA Musique pour célébrer la memoire des grands hommes de la République francaise
HAYDN The Storm
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
JANÁČEK Glagolitic Mass
Linda Kelm, soprano
Dolora Zajic, mezzo-soprano
Gary Lakes, tenor
Kevin Langan, bass
Thomas Weisflog, organ
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director

February 18, 19, 20, and 23, 1988, Orchestra Hall
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72
IVES Symphony No. 3 (The Camp Meeting)
RACHMANINOV Symphony No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 27

March 5, 1988, Perth Concert Hall, Perth
March 10, 1988, Adelaide Festival Center, Adelaide
March 15, 1988, Melbourne Concert Hall, Melbourne
March 18, 1988, Sydney Opera House, Sydney
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72b
IVES Symphony No. 3 (The Camp Meeting)
RACHMANINOV Symphony No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 27

April 6, 7, 8, and 11, 1989, Orchestra Hall
HAYDN Symphony No. 81 in G Major
HAYDN Horn Concerto in D Major, Hob. VIId:3
Dale Clevenger, horn
IVES Symphony No. 1

April 13, 14, 16, and 18, 1989, Orchestra Hall
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 83
Emanuel Ax, piano
American Hymns: Nearer, My God, to Thee; From Greenland’s Icy Mountains; Ye Christian Heralds; Jesus, Lover of My Soul and Sweet By and By
Richard Webster, organ
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
IVES Symphony No. 4
Mary Sauer, piano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director

March 31, April 1, 2, and 5, 1994, Orchestra Hall
J.C. BACH Symphony for Double Orchestra in E-flat Major, Op. 18, No. 1
REICH Three Movements
Patricia Dash, Albert Payson, James Ross and Michael Green, percussion
MAHLER Symphony No. 1 in D Major

April 7, 8, and 9, 1994, Orchestra Hall
BERNSTEIN Imaginary Coney Island Scene from On the Town
BERNSTEIN Chichester Psalms
Ryan Cox, boy soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Cheryl Frazes Hill, director
TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 (Pathétique)

March 16, 17, and 18, 2006, Orchestra Hall
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Celena Shafer, soprano
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director

May 29, 30, and 31, 2008, Orchestra Hall
DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88
OLIVER Federal Street (Great God, we sing that mighty hand)
HATTON Duke Street (God, beneath thy guiding hand)
ROOT The Shining Shore
TRADITIONAL Good Night, Ladies
BISHOP Home, Sweet Home
IVES Symphony: New England Holidays
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director

October 2, 3, and 4, 2008, Orchestra Hall
TILSON THOMAS Street Song for Symphonic Brass
Daniel Gingrich, David Griffin, Oto Carrillo, Susanna Drake and Alice Render, horns
Christopher Martin, Mark Ridenour, John Hagstrom and David Gauger, trumpets
Jay Friedman, Michael Mulcahy and Charles Vernon, trombones
Gene Pokorny, tuba
SIBELIUS Symphony No. 4 in A Minor, Op. 63
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47

February 11, 12, and 13, 2010, Orchestra Hall
CRAWFORD SEEGER Andante for Strings
BERG Three Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 15
Yefim Bronfman, piano

February 18, 19, 20, and 21, 2010, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Ode
STRAVINSKY Apollon musagète
STRAVINSKY Oedipus Rex
Michelle DeYoung, mezzo-soprano
William Burden, tenor
Ryan McKinny, bass-baritone
Stanford Olsen, tenor
Sir Patrick Stewart, narrator
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director

November 4, 5, and 6, 2010, Orchestra Hall
COPLAND Quiet City
Scott Hostetler, english horn
Christopher Martin, trumpet
COPLAND Symphony for Organ and Orchestra
Paul Jacobs, organ
COPLAND Orchestral Variations
COPLAND Appalachian Spring

December 8, 9, and 10, 2011, Orchestra Hall
MAHLER Blumine
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
Jeremy Denk, piano
BRAHMS/Schoenberg Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25

November 21, 22, 23, and 24, 2013, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Elegy for J.F.K.
Kelley O’Connor, mezzo-soprano
John Bruce Yeh, Gregory Smith and J. Lawrie Bloom, clarinets
MAHLER Symphony No. 9

March 17, 18, and 19, 2016, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Scherzo à la Russe
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
Emanuel Ax, piano
SIBELIUS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43

December 15, 16, 17, and 18, 2016, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Scènes de ballet
SAINT-SAËNS Cello Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 33
Guatier Capuçon, cello
PROKOFIEV Suite from Romeo and Juliet

December 13, 14, and 15, 2018, Orchestra Hall
STRAVINSKY Concerto in D for String Orchestra
PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 63
Nicola Benedetti, violin
TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 (Pathétique)

November 30, December 1, 2, and 5, 2023, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Six German Dances, K. 509
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488
Orion Weiss, piano
BRAHMS/Schoenberg Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25

For CBS and Sony, Tilson Thomas also recorded a number of works (all in Medinah Temple) by Charles Ives with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus:

IVES Central Park in the Dark
Recorded May 12, 1986

IVES New England Holidays Symphony
Fred Spector, Jew’s harp
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Recorded May 10 and 12, 1986

IVES Symphony No. 1 in D Minor
Recorded April 15 and 17, 1989

IVES Symphony No. 4
Mary Sauer, piano
Members of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Recorded April 15 and 17, 1989

IVES The Unanswered Question (original version)
IVES The Unanswered Question (revised version)
Adolph Herseth, trumpet
Recorded May 10, 1986

Happy, happy birthday!

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