METALLICA Pays Tribute To SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY Collaborator MICHAEL TILSON THOMAS: 'He Will Be Sorely Missed'

METALLICA has paid tribute to conductor, composer and educator Michael Tilson Thomas (MTT),who led the San Francisco Symphony for 25 years. Thomas died on Wednesday, April 22, nearly five years after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor that doctors later identified as glioblastoma multiforme, at his home in San Francisco, according to a statement from his publicist, Constance Shuman. He was 81 years old.

METALLICA first teamed with the San Francisco Symphony in 1999 for the live album "S&M", four years after Thomas became the symphony's music director. In 2019, Thomas, as conductor, joined with METALLICA to celebrate 20 years since the band and the Symphony recorded "S&M", at the September 6 and September 8, 2019 "S&M²" concerts before 18,000 fans at San Francisco's Chase Center.

Earlier today (Thursday, April 23),METALLICA released the following statement via social media: "It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of legendary conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. A towering figure in classical music, many of you became familiar with the man known as MTT when he worked with us as a major driving force in the development and live performances of the 'S&M2' shows in San Francisco in September of 2019.

"MTT was more than a conductor; an accomplished pianist and composer, he served as the San Francisco Symphony's musical director for 25 years. During his time with the orchestra, he brought innovation, experimentation, and community engagement to San Francisco. He fostered contemporary music by forming relationships with living composers and creating fresh accounts of standard repertory. Throughout his career, he earned 12 Grammy Awards.

"We cherished our time with MTT and learned so much working with him to prepare the 'S&M2' performances; it was a very high honor to have him on the podium for our shows. He will be sorely missed."

The "S&M²" concerts were historic on multiple levels: They served as the grand opening of San Francisco's Chase Center, reunited the band and Symphony for the first time since the 1999 performances captured on the Grammy"S&M" album, and featured the first-ever symphonic renditions of songs written and released since those original "S&M" shows. The event was conducted by Thomas and Edwin Outwater, with new orchestral charts by acclaimed musical arranger Bruce Coughlin supplementing material from the first "S&M".

The sold-out concerts were rapturously received by the 40,000 fans who traveled from nearly 70 countries, as well as the media: Rolling Stone raved "the group proved that anything was possible," Variety noted an atmosphere "buzzing with excitement," while the Mercury News witnessed "a concert that fans will be talking about for decades to come," and Consequence Of Sound hailed "a true celebration of METALLICA and their musical prowess."

The three-hour concerts were split into two parts and included a rendition of "Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth)" from METALLICA's debut album, "Kill 'Em All", performed as a solo by the Symphony bassist Scott Pingel in tribute to METALLICA's late bassist Cliff Burton.

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich told Kerrang! magazine: "The 'Anesthesia' bass solo was incredible. The way the fans reacted to that was goosebump-city. I loved the dare of playing 'Iron Foundry'. I loved revisiting songs we don't play so often like 'The Outlaw Torn' and 'The Call Of Ktulu'. I loved how Edwin brought one sort of dynamic when he was conducting the more rock stuff, and how Michael Tilson Thomas — the maestro, the elder statesman of his world — brought in some different pieces and encouraged the fans to understand where the symphonic and rock worlds overlap. Most of all, though, the fact that there was no barricade stood out. When was the last time you went to a rock show of that size without one? What does that barricade do? What does it mean? It's a safety thing, but in essence it's something that separates people. I loved just being able to walk out with the fans. At one point, I leaned back and let myself go into their embrace. That was a great moment."

In an August 2019 interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, ahead of the shows, Lars dismissed the idea of playing it safe.

"You mean, 'Why not take the easy way?' Two words: San Francisco. It's that simple," Ulrich said. "When we're home, we've got to do something above and beyond."

Regarding the artistic chemistry behind the production, Ulrich said: "Knowing we're in great creative and collaborative company with Michael Tilson Thomas and Edwin Outwater and the whole San Francisco Symphony is an incredible thing."

"It's a beautiful opportunity," METALLICA frontman James Hetfield said at the time. "We're super proud that after 38 years, there's still cool things on the horizon for us."