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Conductor Zubin Mehta takes final bow with Israeli orchestra

Superstar conductor Zubin Mehta, 83, takes to the Tel Aviv stage on Sunday for his final performance as music director of the Israel Philharmonic, retiring after 50 years with the orchestra.

The performance of Liszt's Piano Concerto No.2 and Mahler's Resurrection Symphony is to be streamed live on pay-to-view portal www.medici.tv.


He will be joined by pianist Yefim Bronfman as well as soprano Chen Reiss and mezzo-soprano Okka von der Damerau.

It is scheduled for 2:00 pm (1100 GMT) at the Mediterranean city's Charles Bronfman Auditorium.

The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra appointed Mehta music advisor in 1969, music director in 1977, and music director for life in 1981.

His official biography says that during his tenure, "Mehta has conducted over 3,000 concerts with this extraordinary ensemble including tours spanning five continents."

He has simultaneously had other strings to his bow.

He was music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic from 1962 to 1978 and of the New York Philharmonic from 1978 to 1991.

During his time in New York, he conducted more than 1,000 concerts, according to the New York Philharmonic website, which says his tenure "was the longest in the orchestra's history."

He has conducted other orchestras around the world, including in Austria, Germany and Italy.

Born in Mumbai, India, on April 29, 1936, Mehta grew up in a musical environment.

His father, Mehli Mehta, founded the Bombay Symphony and was music director of the American Youth Symphony in Los Angeles.

Together with his brother Zarin, he is a co-chairman of the Mehli Mehta Music Foundation in Mumbai, where children are educated in western classical music.

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Photo by Magali Cohen / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images

Celine Dion is using bold fashion to mark her recovery, not just her comeback

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  • Her recovery has combined physical therapy, vocal therapy, immunotherapy and medication with a disciplined routine of Pilates and ballet, which experts say suits her condition specifically.

Celine Dion has spent the days leading up to her Paris residency doing something she couldn't reliably do for years: dressing exactly how she wants, in public, without her body dictating the terms. The outfits, an Alaïa trench coat here, a Tom Ford leather jacket there, have drawn plenty of fashion coverage on their own. Read alongside her health journey, they mean something considerably more than a good outfit.

What is Stiff Person Syndrome, and what has it actually done to her?

Stiff Person Syndrome is a rare neurological and autoimmune disorder that causes severe muscle stiffness alongside painful, unpredictable spasms in the arms, legs and torso. For Dion specifically, the condition has affected her ability to walk normally and, at its worst, made it difficult for her to use her vocal cords to sing the way she once did. The 2024 documentary I Am: Celine Dion gave an unusually candid look at the toll it had taken, including footage of her experiencing a seizure.

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