Zubin Mehta announces retirement from Israel Philharmonic in 2019
Legendary conductor Zubin Mehta announced his retirement on Monday as music director of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra – effective in October 2019.
The 80-year-old Indian-born conductor has been with the ensemble on a regular basis for close to half a century, and there is undoubtedly a special mutual relationship between the iconic conductor and the players.
Combining concerts, recordings and tours, Mehta has conducted thousands of performances on five continents with the IPO. Since 1985, he has also been chief conductor of the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence.
Over the years, Mehta has won countless awards and titles all over the world, including a special award at the 1991 Israel Prize ceremony and the Praemium Imperiale – the World Culture Prize in Memory of His Imperial Highness Prince Takamatsu – by Japan, and has even been honored by a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In addition to his active career and multiple music directorships, Mehta has maintained a strong commitment to exposing today’s youth to classical music. He founded the Mehli Mehta Music Foundation in his birthplace of Mumbai, where more than 300 children annually find access to Western Classical Music.
Barry Davis contributed to this report.