Conductor Herbert Blomstedt has been leading major orchestras for more than half a century. The numerous orchestras he has held positions with include the Philharmonic Orchestras of Berlin and Munich, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic.
His extensive discography lists more than 130 works, among them all the symphonies of Beethoven and Schubert, and the Complete Symphonies of Carl Nielsen. He succeeded Kurt Masur as music director of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, a post which he held until the end of the 2004-05 season.