The Boston Symphony Orchestra has a new music director. Andris Nelsons has been picked to replace James Levine, whose tenure had been marred by health problems.
According to the Boston Globe, the move makes Nelsons the 15th music director in the BSO’s 132-year history. The announcement comes after Levine stepped down in 2011.
Nelsons will take over at the start of the 2013-2014 season, which his first appearance set for Oct. 17-19. He’s lined up performances of Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 in C with Paul Lewis. On March 6, 2014, he’ll lead a performance of Strauss’s Salome.
During the summer, Boston audiences will get to see him and the BSO at the Tanglewood Music Center for Verdi’s Requiem on June 27.
“I think it’s very important to be part of the Boston society and the people who live in Boston,” Nelsons told the Globe. “I always feel that music is food for our souls, and [Bostonians] will be hungry and continue to be part of the Boston Symphony Orchestra family.”
The Associated Press reports that Trustees Chairman Ted Kelly added in a statement that Nelsons’ “unique creativity and visionary instincts will bring a remarkable inspiration” to the BSO.
Nelsons, 34, is from Latvia and heard the news while in Amsterdam. He was conducting the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. The Globe notes that he has a very different personality from Levine, since he loves popular music and is looking forward to see the Bruins. His wife, Kristīne Opolais, is a singer and they have a 16-month-old daughter, Adriana.