On Saturday, February 23, the New World Symphony will celebrate its 25th Anniversary with a Black Tie Gala honoring Michael Tilson Thomas, its Founder and Artistic Director. The centerpiece of the evening is a concert featuring works by Leonard Bernstein - including excerpts from West Side Story -  performed by the New World Symphony under MTT's baton, with Jessica Rivera and Dimitri Pittas starring as Maria and Tony, respectively. 

The concert includes performances by NWS Fellows and is followed by a dinner at the New World Center. After dinner, the Performance Hall will be reopened for "Big Band Swing," a 1950s-style party featuring Michael Andrew and the Atomic Big Band. 

Click here for details.

On February 16 and 17, MTT and the New World Symphony explore the music of Mozart with a unique program that samples the Austrian composer's core output: the symphonies, the concertos, chamber music and theatrical works. Part I of the program focusses on Mozart's symphonic music, while Part II examines the composer's work as a freelancer in Vienna. The third part of the program will feature a performance of Act I from Mozart's singspiel Zaide, conducted by MTT. Learn more about "A Mozart Journey" at the NWS.

Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony have won the Grammy Award in the category of Best Orchestral Performance for their recording of John Adams's Harmonielehre and Short Ride in a Fast Machine. The album was released in March 2012 in conjunction with MTT and the Orchestra's month-long American Mavericks festival and tour. 

MTT commissioned Short Ride in a Fast Machine from American composer John Adams in 1986. You can view a video excerpt of the Grammy-winning performance from the SFS's Centennial Season Opening Gala in September 2011  here and a feature about the composition here. You can also watch Adams and MTT discuss Harmonielehre in  this video. The San Francisco Symphony commissioned, premiered, and first recorded Harmonielehre in March 1985. 

The 2013 Grammy Award is MTT's eleventh, the Orchestra's 15th, and the eighth for recordings on the SFS Media Label.

Purchase the album here.  

This summer Michael Tilson Thomas appears at the Hollywood Bowl, leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic in two performances as part of its opening week. MTT kicks off the Bowl's classical season on July 9 when he conducts Mahler's Second Symphony, "Resurrection," with the LA Phil, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and soloists Kiera Duffy and Sasha Cooke. For his second concert at the Hollywood Bowl on July 11, MTT will be joined by violinist Gil Shaham, who, along with the LA Phil, performs Sibelius's Violin Concerto in a program that also comprises Rimsky-Korsakov's Dubinushka and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4. Learn more here.