Herbert Blomstedt, the American-born Swedish conductor who led the San Francisco Symphony from 1985 to 1995 and continued conducting into his late 90s, died November 4 at 99.
The San Francisco Symphony confirmed his death and said its January 14 to 16, 2027 concerts with Elim Chan will be dedicated to him. German broadcaster NDR, whose orchestra he also led, said he died in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Blomstedt's connection with San Francisco lasted far beyond his decade as music director. He became conductor laureate when he stepped down in 1995 and returned regularly to the orchestra he had helped bring to international audiences.
The San Francisco years
His first guest appearance with the orchestra came in February 1984. A month later, he was hired as its next music director, beginning in 1985.
During his tenure, the orchestra made its first European tour in 15 years, performing at the Salzburg, Edinburgh and Lucerne festivals. Its Decca recordings with Blomstedt included complete symphony cycles by Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius.
His career also included leadership of Dresden's Staatskapelle and Leipzig's Gewandhaus Orchestra. He recorded all nine Beethoven symphonies with each ensemble, making two complete cycles at different stages of his working life. He led Dresden from 1975 to 1985 and Leipzig from 1998 to 2005.
Born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on July 11, 1927, Blomstedt moved to Sweden with his family at age 2. His studies later brought him back to the United States, including Juilliard and Tanglewood, where he studied with Leonard Bernstein and won the Koussevitzky conducting prize in 1953. His formal conducting debut followed in Stockholm in 1954.
NDR recalled his performances of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms and Bruckner, as well as the Scandinavian composers Nielsen, Stenhammar and Sibelius. His guest appearances in Hamburg continued long after his period as chief conductor.
He was still conducting this year at 98, including appearances with the Detroit Symphony and Leipzig's Gewandhaus Orchestra. Health problems had interrupted his schedule, and planned San Francisco appearances in May 2026 and January 2027 were canceled.
January concerts at Davies Symphony Hall
The dedicated performances are scheduled for 2 p.m. January 14 and 7:30 p.m. January 15 and 16 at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco. All times are Pacific.
Chan will conduct Noriko Koide's Swaddling Silk and Gossamer Rain, Mozart's Sinfonia concertante for violin and viola, and Elgar's Enigma Variations. Concertmaster Alexander Barantschik and principal viola Jonathan Vinocour are the Mozart soloists.
The orchestra lists an Inside Music Talk onstage one hour before each performance, included for ticket holders. Davies Symphony Hall is at 201 Van Ness Avenue.
