A renowned American conductor, composer and pianist specializing in 20th-century
American music, Michael Tilson Thomas conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic and
London Symphony before his appointment in 1995 to the San Francisco Symphony.
Born in Los Angeles on December 21, 1944, he studied composition with Ingolf
Dahl at the University of Southern California, as well as piano, harpsichord and
conducting. A student of Friedelind Wagner, he made his debut as assistant
conductor at the Bayreuth Festival in 1966, and two years later won the
Koussevitzky Prize at Tanglewood. After c...