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With deep sadness, we share with you that the San Francisco Symphony’s beloved Music Director Laureate, Michael Tilson Thomas (MTT) died at home on Wednesday, April 22 surrounded by family and friends. In 2021, he was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive type of brain cancer. Through his illness he continued to make music—a testament to his legacy as a musician and communicator. He was preceded in death by his husband Joshua Robison.
MTT made his debut with the San Francisco Symphony in 1974 at age 29 and, since then, led nearly 1,800 concerts over the course of his 52-year relationship with the Symphony. During his incredible 25-year tenure as Music Director (1995–2020), MTT oversaw the launch of SFS Media, the Symphony’s own recording label, which released many Grammy Award-winning recordings; introduced Keeping Score, creating a lasting and memorable music education experience for countless young people; and created unforgettable concert experiences for the Symphony’s audiences and community.
In early 2025, when Michael Tilson Thomas shared that his glioblastoma had returned, he announced that he would, at that point, wind down public performances. At that time MTT wrote, “A ‘coda’ is a musical element at the end of a composition that brings the whole piece to a conclusion. A coda can vary greatly in length. My life’s coda is generous and rich.”
In January 2024, Michael Tilson Thomas conducted the San Francisco Symphony in Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, marking his final subscription series concerts with the Orchestra. On April 26, 2025, he made his final public conducting appearance during a special concert celebrating his 80th birthday, leading the San Francisco Symphony in Benjamin Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, which MTT conducted for his first Gala as Music Director with the Orchestra in 1995, and Ottorino Respighi’s Roman Festivals.
The San Francisco Symphony will dedicate the June 18, 20-21 performances of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony to Michael Tilson Thomas. Plans for a special concert in celebration of his life and lasting impact will be shared at a later date.
Friends and colleagues from the San Francisco Symphony share the following remembrances:
San Francisco Symphony Board Chair Priscilla Geeslin:
“When Michael Tilson Thomas was named Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony, I remember a feeling of pure exhilaration—as though something extraordinary had just been set in motion for all of us. What followed exceeded even that early excitement. On the podium, he brought brilliance, curiosity, and a singular voice that reshaped the orchestra. Off the podium, he revealed warmth, wit, and a generosity of spirit that made getting to know him as a friend an unexpected gift. MTT didn’t just lead the Symphony—he became part of the cultural fabric of San Francisco itself, expanding what it meant to be an orchestra in a city like ours. His impact reached far beyond the concert hall, touching the life of the city in ways both visible and deeply personal. And even after stepping down as Music Director, he never truly stepped away. He remained an integral part of the Symphony—artistically, intellectually, and as a guiding presence—continuing to shape and inspire the organization he helped define.
We were, quite simply, so lucky to have him.”
San Francisco Symphony Chief Executive Officer Matthew Spivey:
"Michael Tilson Thomas gave the San Francisco Symphony 25 years of extraordinary artistry, curiosity, and heart—and he gave each of us who knew him something more personal than that. When we first met during my job interview, we spent the entire conversation on a single piece of music—Ligeti’s Violin Concerto—and that was how he came to know people and came to know the world. He was a brilliant conductor, a generous teacher, and a deeply original human being, and he reimagined what this orchestra—and classical music in a city like ours—could be. San Francisco and the musical world are better for his life. The musicians, audiences, and young artists he shaped will carry him forward.”
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie:
“Michael Tilson Thomas was a visionary leader in San Francisco’s music and arts community and helped shape our entire city’s cultural identity. In his time leading the San Francisco Symphony, Michael elevated the city’s music scene onto the global stage through innovative performances and a passion for bringing music to more people. As one of the first prominent and openly gay conductors, he helped lift up our LGBTQ+ community, commissioning and composing works that resonated deeply with many San Franciscans. His love for our city has been an inspiration to Becca and me and for generations of San Franciscans. His legacy will live on for generations to come.”
San Francisco Symphony Cellist Barbara Bogatin, Phyllis Blair Cello Chair:
“When I think of Michael and his life-long legacy of sharing music and humanity, the lyrics from Leonard Bernstein’s song from On the Town come to mind,
‘Where has the time all gone to?
Haven't done half the things we want to
Oh well, we'll catch up some other time.’
The final time MTT conducted his beloved San Francisco Symphony at his 80th birthday celebration on April 25, 2025, almost exactly one year ago, though time and illness were beginning to catch up with him, he sang those lyrics with full-throated joy and a bemused smile,
‘Just when the fun’s beginning
Comes the final inning...
Oh well, we’ll catch up some other time.’
His commitment to reaching deep into the hearts and minds of his musician colleagues and his listeners up to the very last row of the balcony will always be present in those of us lucky enough to have shared the stage with him.
When I visited Michael several weeks ago at his home he didn’t say much, but greeted me with a quiet ‘Hey, Barb’ – and that was enough.”
Member of the San Francisco Symphony Board of Governors and past President (2012-2020) Sakurako Fisher:
“Michael had me at the Mavericks Festival. He exploded my brain with the music he presented, sharing his passion and deep pleasure in rewiring my concept of what great music could be. His joy in bringing music and people together, anywhere and at any time influenced and infused multiple generations of listeners and practitioners. I especially loved his impromptu music-fests that could happen anytime he was near a piano and Joshua was near him. His curiosity was bottomless, his joy boundless and his smile stretched from San Francisco to Miami. The color blue for me will forever be imbued with Michael’s spirit.”
Member of the San Francisco Board of Governors and past President (2001-2012) John Goldman:
“When one thinks about Michael Tilson Thomas, there are certain words that come to mind: instructive, daring, relentless.
He was considered by many to be a legend, but at heart he was a caring soul, interested in exploring the unusual, learning something new, experiencing life to its fullest. He fostered my growth and appreciation for music, but he also made his craft accessible and interesting for the broadest population possible.
I knew Michael for over 30 years, and I am certain that his legacy for the San Francisco Symphony, for our community, and for all lovers of music, will last in perpetuity. He changed the American orchestra, and we are fortunate that we celebrated his impact for these many years.”
About Michael Tilson Thomas
Michael Tilson Thomas was Music Director Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony, Conductor Laureate of the London Symphony Orchestra, cofounder and Artistic Director Laureate of the New World Symphony, and Distinguished Professor of Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He was a 12-time Grammy Award winner and conducted the major orchestras of Europe and the United States.
Born in Los Angeles, he studied conducting and composition with Ingolf Dahl at the University of Southern California and, as a young musician, worked with artists including Igor Stravinsky and Aaron Copland. In his mid-20s, he became Assistant Conductor—and later Principal Guest Conductor—of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He subsequently served as Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic, Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra.
In 1987, he cofounded the New World Symphony, a postgraduate orchestral academy in Miami Beach dedicated to preparing young musicians of diverse backgrounds for leadership roles in classical music. He worked with more than 1,200 NWS Fellows, many of whom have gone on to major musical careers.
He became Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony in 1995, ushering in a period of significant growth and heightened international recognition for the orchestra, championing contemporary and American composers alongside classical masters.
His discography includes more than 120 recordings, and his television work includes series for the BBC and PBS, the New York Philharmonic’s Young People’s Concerts, and numerous televised performances. His profile Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is aired on PBS’s American Masters series in fall 2020.
Throughout his career, he was an active composer, with major works including From the Diary of Anne Frank, premiered with narrator Audrey Hepburn, and Meditations on Rilke. Both appear on SFS Media’s Grammy Award-winning recording of his music. In 2023, Yuja Wang and Teddy Abrams released a recording on DG that included Tilson Thomas’s You Come Here Often?, which won a Grammy Award in 2024 for Best Classical Instrumental Solo.
He was an Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France, member of the American Academies of Arts & Sciences and Arts & Letters, National Medal of Arts recipient, and a 2019 Kennedy Center Honoree.
Three major recording projects were released in 2024 in celebration of his 80th birthday: GRACE: The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas, a four-disc box set of Tilson Thomas’s compositions on Pentatone; The Complete Columbia, CBS and RCA Recordings on Sony Classical, and The Complete Deutsche Grammophon & Argo Recordings on DG Eloquence.
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*Please contact Amanda MacBlane ([email protected]) to confirm rights and credits if you wish to use online or in print
For more information and materials on MTT’s life and work, please visit MTT’s legacy website (michaeltilsonthomas.com) which features:
• A complete catalog of MTT’s published compositions, including recordings, critical editions of the scores, and program notes
• Microsite dedicated to PENTATONE’s four-disc recording project Grace: The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas
• A full discography of MTT’s nearly 150 recordings as a conductor, composer, and pianist, most of which can be listened to directly on the site
• The full documentary American Masters film Michael Tilson Thomas: Where NOW Is
• All nine episodes of the SFS Media television series Keeping Score
• The complete film of MTT’s stage show The Thomashefskys: Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theatre
• All eight episodes of the SFS Media radio series The MTT Files
• The 1970 film To Be a Conductor
• The 1979 documentary Carl Ruggles: American Mystic, hosted by MTT
• The full text of the book Viva Voce, a series of conversations between author and music journalist, Edward Seckerson and MTT published originally in 1995
• An interactive timeline of MTT’s life and family history, including photos, recordings, and video
• Archives featuring photos, videos, and writings, which will be expanded over time
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