Kurt Masur

The German conductor Kurt Masur was born on 18 July 1927 in Brieg. He became interested in music trough the piano lessons of his older sister. When he was unable to stretch his right little finger, he had to cancel his piano studies and moved on to conducting. For this reason, he also never used a baton.
Kurt Masur led the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra for nearly thirty years. The German government praised Masur for his role in 1989, when the GDR regime was threatened by mass demonstrations. His influence helped the Berlin Wall fall peacefully.
Subsequently, he broke through internationally. He served as music director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra from 1991 to 2002, bringing it to new heights. He subsequently held the post of principal conductor of both the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orchestre National de France.
In 2012 Kurt Masur disclosed that the was suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, as a result of which he was rarely seen on the concert stage. He died at the end of 2015 in Greenwich, Connecticut, at the age of 88.