MTT the Maestro
US News and World Report just published the names of America's Best Leaders and our own Michael Tilson Thomas made the list.  This will come as no surprise to anyone who is a regular attendee at Davies Symphony Hall or, for that matter,  to anyone living in the Bay Area.  In his 12 seasons with the SFS, MTT has brought a wonderful excitement and creative innovation not only to the orchestra but to the community in general. And not a little glamor too.  Here's MTT on his musical mission:

"If I had to say, 'Who am I going to impress from here onward? Am I going to be playing for the experts or the guys at the gym?' I'll pick the guys at the gym," Thomas says. "I want them to feel there is something in this music for them. You don't have to know anything special to love classical music. If you are alive and in tune with your own feelings and the way in which those feelings are changing all the time, then classical music is for you."

Read the entire profile.