Seiji Ozawa was an offbeat, norm-breaking Japanese conductor who led the Boston Symphony Orchestra longer than any other music director.
- Died: February 6, 2024 (Who else died on February 6?)
- Details of death: Died in Tokyo of heart failure at the age of 88.
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Seiji Ozawa’s legacy
Born in China to Japanese parents, Ozawa began studying piano just prior to the end of World War II, with a focus on the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. However, a rugby mishap injured his fingers as a teen, so Ozawa re-focused on conducting. He graduated from Toho Gakuen School of Music in 1957, and just two years later took first place at the International Competition of Orchestra Conductors in France. Having drawn notable attention from luminaries in the field, Ozawa was recruited by Leonard Bernstein (1918– 1990) to work under him with the New York Philharmonic. He also studied with Austrian conductor Herbert von Karajan.
After stints with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, and the Ravinia Festival, in 1973, he landed with the organization he’d lead for the next three decades: the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO). His 29-year tenure remains the longest of any musical director with the orchestra. Ozawa’s time on stage was both celebrated and, occasionally, controversial. He did not wear a tux, as was traditional. He wore his hair in a wild mop top reminiscent of a 1960s rock and roller. He wore love beads around his neck. His norm-breaking approach and high energy on stage inspired some, outraged others, and helped expand the reach of orchestral music.
Ozawa stepped down from the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 2002 and joined the Vienna State Opera as principal conductor. During his time in the spotlight, Ozawa took the BSO to China, founded multiple music festivals in Japan, and made other efforts to help spread the music he loved. His long list of honors includes Japan’s Order of Culture, multiple Emmy and Grammy awards, multiple honorary degrees, honorary membership in multiple philharmonics, and more.
In 2010, a series of health concerns began to take a toll on Ozawa, but he continued to be involved in the field. As recently as 2022, at 87 years old, he led an orchestra from a wheelchair in a performance that was beamed to the International Space Station.
On inspiring other Asians to break into orchestral music:
“Since I’m kind of a pioneer I must do my best before I die, so people younger than me think, ‘Oh, that is possible. I think it’s possible, I hope it’s possible.’”—from a 2002 interview for NPR
Tributes to Seiji Ozawa
Full obituary: The New York Times
