The San Francisco Conservatory of Music Celebrates ‘GRACE: The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas’

In celebration of the musical giant’s 80th birthday, Pentatone Music, in association with the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, has released GRACE: The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas, a collection spanning more than five decades of his compositional career. The 4-CD set also includes a luxe book containing composer’s notes, original essays and a timeline of archival photos chronicling MTT’s life as a pianist, conductor, composer, recording artist,and teacher.

On October 8, SFCM hosted a special event celebrating the release of this collection. Numbered among the audience of music lovers were VIPs Gordon Getty, Bernard Osher and Ute Bowes. Also featuring Tilson Thomas himself and members of the San Francisco musical community, the celebration began with a reception at SFCM’s Ann Getty Center for Education, and was followed by a performance of Michael’s music in the Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall. Guests were treated to an unforgettable concert, headlined by MTT, with special appearances by Edwin Outwater, John Wilson, Demarre McGill and SFCM students. 

All net proceeds from the event were donated to brain cancer research at the UCSF Brain Tumor Center.