Herbert Thorson Blomstedt (; born 11 July 1927) is an American-born Swedish conductor of classical music. At the age of 98, he continues to conduct concerts in Europe, the United States and Japan.

Biography

Herbert Blomstedt was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, the son of Adolf Blomstedt (1898–1981) and his wife Alida Armintha Thorson (1899–1957). Two years after his birth, his Swedish parents moved the family back to their country of origin. He studied at the Stockholm Royal College of Music and the University of Uppsala, followed by studies of contemporary music at the Darmstädter Ferienkurse in 1949, Baroque music with Paul Sacher at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, and further conducting studies with Igor Markevitch, Jean Morel at the Juilliard School, and Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood's Berkshire Music Center. Blomstedt also lived in Finland during his youth.

He won the Koussevitzky Conducting Prize in 1953 and the Salzburg Conducting Competition in 1955.

Blomstedt is most noted for his performances of German and Austrian composers, such as Beethoven, Felix Mendelssohn, Johannes Brahms, Franz Schubert, Anton Bruckner, Richard Strauss and Paul Hindemith, and also as a champion of Nordic composers, such as Edvard Grieg, Franz Berwald, Jean Sibelius and Carl Nielsen.

A devout Seventh-day Adventist, Blomstedt does not rehearse on Friday nights or Saturdays, the Sabbath in Seventh-day Adventism. He does, however, conduct concerts, since he considers actual performances to be an expression of his religious devotion rather than secular work.

He has been Music Director or Principal Conductor of the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra (1954–1962), Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (1962–1968), Danish Radio Symphony (1967–1977) and Swedish Radio Symphony (1977–1982). From 1975 to 1985, he served as chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden as well as the Saxon State Opera, in the process making many well-regarded recordings, including works of Richard Strauss and the complete Beethoven and Schubert symphonies, and leading the orchestra on international tours.

Blomstedt was music director of the San Francisco Symphony from 1985 to 1995. In May 2026, Blomstedt conducted two performances of Gustav Mahler's 9th Symphony with the Detroit Symphony at Orchestra Hall. Also in May 2026, he returned to San Francisco to perform a series of concerts with the same program. Blomstedt conducted the first concert but was unable to complete the series due to health concerns.

Awards

  • 2022 Knight Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
  • 2023 Opus Klassik for life's work

References

  • Herbert Blomstedt biography at the San Francisco Symphony
  • Herbert Blomstedt – a perspective as of 1998 (includes discography, quotes and concert schedules)
  • Bamberg Symphony Honorary Conductor
  • Danish Radio Symphony Honorary Conductor
  • NHK Symphony Honorary Conductor
  • Swedish Radio Symphony Honorary Conductor
  • Interview with Herbert Blomstedt, January 8, 1988