Infycle Technologies at 15:54, 16 March 2026

2026-03-16T15:54:55Z

New page

{{Short description|Indian conductor and violinist}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2007}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Mehli Mehta
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| image =
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date ={{Birth date|df=yes|1908|9|25}}
| birth_place = [[Bombay]], British India
| death_date ={{Death date and age|df=yes|2002|10|19|1908|9|25}}
| death_place = [[Santa Monica – UCLA Medical Center]], [[Santa Monica, California]]
| body_discovered =
| resting_place =
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| citizenship =
| education = [[University of Bombay]]<br>[[Trinity College of Music]] in London ([[Licentiate (degree)|licentiate]], 1929)
| alma_mater =
| occupation = violinist, [[Conductor (music)|conductor]]
| known_for = founded, Bombay Symphony Orchestra (1935); founded, Bombay String Quartet (1940); founded American Youth Sym. Orch. (1964)
| notable_works =
| spouse = Tehmina Daruvala (m. ca 1935)
| partner =
| children = [[Zubin Mehta]]<br/>[[Zarin Mehta]]
| parents =
| awards =
| website = {{URL|www.mmmfindia.org|Mehli Mehta Music Foundation}}
| footnotes =<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Mehli Mehta |title= Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians |location=New York City |publisher=[[G. Schirmer|Schirmer Books]] |year=2001 |accessdate=6 September 2011 |chapter-url=http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/bic1/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&disableHighlighting=false&prodId=BIC2&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CK2420007898&mode=view&userGroupName=fairfax_main&jsid=75e026c1ab3c837a9f12faea9e700571 |id={{Gale|K2420007898}}|title-link= Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians|series= [[Gale (publisher)|Gale]] Biography in Context}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Obituaries – Mehli Mehta, 94; Youth Symphony Conductor  |first=Chris |last=Pasles |date=22 October 2002 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=6 September 2011 |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-oct-20-me-mehta20-story.html}}</ref>
}}
'''Mehli Mehta''' (25 September 1908 – 19 October 2002) was an Indian conductor and violinist.<ref name=NYT>{{cite news |author= |title=Mehli Mehta, Symphony Conductor, 94 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/22/arts/mehli-mehta-symphony-conductor-94.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |agency=[[Reuters]] |date=October 22, 2002 |access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref>

==Early life==
Mehta was born in [[Bombay]], [[India]] to a [[Parsi people|Parsi]] family.<ref name=NYT/> His involvement in music stemmed from his birth. As a young violinist his main musical influence and inspiration was [[Jascha Heifetz]]. A pioneering figure in the Indian musical world, he founded the [[Bombay Symphony Orchestra]] in 1935, and was its [[Concertmaster]] (1935–1945) and [[Conductor (music)|conductor]] (1945–1955). He was married to Tehmina.

==Performing career==
In 1940 Mehta founded the [[Bombay String Quartet]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Sorabji |first=Deepika |date=October 8, 2010 |title=MMMF: Classical music in Mumbai has a savior |url=http://travel.cnn.com/mumbai/play/mehli-mehta-music-foundation-261459/ |work=[[CNN]] |access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref> He spent five years in New York City studying with eminent violin pedagogue [[Ivan Galamian]], and earned degrees from the [[University of Bombay]] and [[Trinity College of Music]] in London.

He moved to the United States in 1945, where he studied violin in New York. In 1955 Mehli Mehta moved to England, where he served for five years as Assistant Concertmaster and Concertmaster of the [[Hallé Orchestra]] of [[Manchester]] under Sir [[John Barbirolli]]. Mehta came to regard Barbirolli as "one of the greatest influences of my conducting life."

In 1959 he joined the [[Curtis String Quartet|Curtis Quartet]] of [[Philadelphia]] and toured with them across the United States for the next five years. In later years he was to state, "the string quartet has been the prime, basic factor of my entire musical philosophy." He then moved to Los Angeles and was Director of the Orchestra Department at [[UCLA]] (1964 to 1976).

Within two months of his arrival in 1964, he organised the [[American Youth Symphony]] with students from all the universities in Los Angeles. Under his dedicated leadership the orchestra grew to its current size of 110 young musicians, ages 16–27, from all over Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. He conducted the orchestra at the twelve-hour [[Beethoven]] Marathon in a performance of a Beethoven symphony on Beethoven's 200th birthday, 16 December 1970, in the [[Dorothy Chandler Pavilion]], a concert at which his son, [[Zubin Mehta]], also conducted.<ref>[http://www.riprense.com/Odetojoy.htm Riposte by Rip Rense: "Ode To Joy..."]</ref> He led the orchestra until its 34th season in 1998.

In his biography of Barbirolli, author [[Michael Kennedy (music critic)|Michael Kennedy]] quotes the great conductor as saying, "I... attended Mehli's concert with the American Youth Symphony. I am glad I did, for dear Mehli was magnificent. Made those children play really quite splendidly. I was really thrilled and impressed."

Mehta was highly acclaimed when he appeared as conductor with the [[Philadelphia Orchestra]] in 1978, 1980, 1982 and 1984. In addition, he conducted the [[Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin|RIAS Berlin]], [[Israel]], Tokyo, [[Yokohama]], [[Jerusalem]], [[Venezuela]] and [[Brazil]] Symphonies; the [[Israel]] Sinfonietta; and the symphony orchestras of [[San Antonio Symphony|San Antonio]], [[Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids]], [[Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra|Milwaukee]], Miami, [[Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra|Puerto Rico]], [[Rhode Island]], [[Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra|Jacksonville]], [[Memphis Symphony Orchestra|Memphis]], [[Ashland Symphony Orchestra|Ashland]] and [[Eugene Symphony|Eugene]]. In March 1983, he made his New York debut at [[Carnegie Hall]] to unanimous acclaim with the National Orchestra Association Symphony.

Mehta was the recipient of the Governor's "Award for the Arts" of the [[California Arts Council]]: the "Magnum Opus Award" of the [[University of Southern California]]; the American String Teachers Award; the Award of Merit from the Mayor and Council of Los Angeles; and the Zoroastrian Association of California's Honorable Award. Mehta was under the management of [[International Creative Management|ICM Artists Ltd.]], New York.

Mehli Mehta died in [[Santa Monica, California|Santa Monica]], California on 19 October 2002, aged 94.

==Legacy==
Mehta's son, [[Zubin Mehta|Zubin]], is a well-known classical music conductor. His other son, [[Zarin Mehta|Zarin]], was the executive director of the New York Philharmonic and was previously the executive director of the Montreal Symphony as well as the [[Ravinia Festival]] in Chicago.

==Sources==
{{Reflist}}
*[http://www.mvdaily.com/news/item.cgi?id=103799 MV Daily.com]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehta, Mehli}}
[[Category:1908 births]]
[[Category:2002 deaths]]
[[Category:Parsi people from Mumbai]]
[[Category:University of Mumbai alumni]]
[[Category:Alumni of Trinity College of Music]]
[[Category:Indian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television faculty]]
[[Category:American musicians of Indian descent]]
[[Category:Musicians from Mumbai]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian conductors (music)]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:Indian expatriates in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Mehta family (classical music)|Mehli]]
[[Category:American people of Parsi descent]]

Mehli Mehta - Revision history

Infycle Technologies at 15:54, 16 March 2026