John Nelson 1941-2025
John Nelson passed away March 31, age 83.
The American conductor was most celebrated for his opera conducting, particularly French repertoire and music of Hector Berlioz, which he recorded extensively.
The son of missionaries, Nelson graduated from Wheaton College, going on to the Juilliard School where he studied conducting with Jean Morel. Nelson was a regional presence early in his career by virtue of his decade-long tenure as music director of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (1976-1987). While there he led several notable American premieres, and brought the orchestra to Carnegie Hall twice and on its first European tour.
Nelson was a regular presence at Lyric Opera throughout the 1990s, leading six productions, including a memorable Roméo et Juliette with Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu, and Handel’s Alcina with Renée Fleming, which was his final Lyric appearance.
He conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra a handful of times, with a single subscription program in 1973 and twice at Ravinia in the 1990s.
In 1994, he led a local concert that resulted in a best-selling recording of Henryk Gorecki’s Miserere and other choral works by the Polish composer, featuring the combined forces of the Chicago Symphony and Lyric Opera choruses (Nonesuch).
In 2011, Nelson inaugurated the Chicago Bach Project, which presented Lenten performances of Bach’s Passions and Mass in B minor on a rotating basis. Beginning at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Lincoln Park and later moving downtown to the Harris Theater, these annual Bach performances drew large audiences through 2016.
The Chicago Bach Project was an initiative of Soli Deo Gloria, which Nelson founded to commission and perform spiritually based music by contemporary composers. Among its fruits was James MacMilllan’s Alpha and Omega, which received its world premiere at Rockefeller Chapel in 2011.
Nelson’s wife Anita, passed away in 2012. He is survived by two daughters, Kirsten Nelson Hood and Kari Nelson Chronopoulus, and many grandchildren.
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Posted Apr 30, 2025 at 12:57 pm by Robert Levin
A lovely tribute to John, with whom I performed at the Aspen Music Festival in the early seventies. I remember playing Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony with him as a first violinist in the Aspen Chamber Orchestra. It was a beautiful concert!