He is an orchestral conductor, composer and pianist born in Los Angeles, California to the Broadway stage manager Ted Thomas. He studied at the University of Southern California and while he was under the tutelage of Friedlinde Wagner he was an Assistant Conductor at the Bayreuth Festival.
His debut was in 1969 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra where he replaced the conductor mid-concert when he took ill. He carried on with them as an Assistant Conductor until 1974 when he became Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.
He has been the Principal Conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony and a Principal Guest Conductor with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra as well as conducting the Young People’s Concerts in the 1970s with the New York Philharmonic.
In 1987 he founded the New World Symphony in Miami, Florida, and he is currently their Artistic Director.
A champion of American composers he is thought to be the leading interpreter of Aaron Copland’s compositions. He is also a composer in his own right and has written works that include Poems of Emily Dickinson, Urban Legend and From the Diary of Anne Frank.
Appearing on numerous recordings he has been the recipient of 7 Grammy Awards, has been featured in the films Manhattan and the Carnival of the Animals, has appeared in many television programmes and is the host of the TV series Keeping Score.
London Symphony Orchestra recordings
Giselle (Adolphe Charles Adam)
Sony 42450
Conductor – Michael Tilson Thomas
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