Foregoers

b. 10/21/1912, Budapest, Hungary, d. 9/5/1997, Antibes, France Conductor

Born György Stein, Solti studied piano and composition with Ernst von Dohnányi, Zoltán Kodály and Béla Bartók at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest. For almost twenty-five years, he concentrated entirely on conducting operas. In 1969 he took over as director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and his second career as a conductor of orchestral music began. From 1979 to 1983 he was director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1992 he took over from Herbert von Karajan as artistic director of the Salzburg Easter Festival. For his outstanding contribution to music, he received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain in 1972.