Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Ravinia Festival since June 1, 1990. Born in Bombay, India in 1938 to a musical family (His father, violinist/conductor Mehli Mehta founded the Bombay Symphony. Brother Zubin, one of the most celebrated conductors, has served as music director of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic before assuming his current position with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. His wife Carmen Mehta [born Carmen Lasky] teaches voice at Northwestern University.).
After a successful business career (Mehta was a partner of international accounting firm Coopers and Lybrand), Mehta joined the Montreal Symphony Board of Directors, and in 1981 became vice president of the orchestra. Within the year, he had become managing director of MSO. During Mehta's tenure there, the MSO became one of the world's most respected orchestras.
During Mehta's first seasons as Executive Director of Ravinia Festival, the Fest set record-high attendance figures. The success has continued -- 1995 set another record -- nearly 563,000 people attended Ravinia shows, and 1998 ticket sales were $7.6 million. Though the programming at Ravinia is still mainstream, under Mehta it's become much more diverse, encompassing jazz, world music, and pop/rock.
The star-studded "Jazz at Ravinia," one of Mehta's contributions, has been one of the festival's most successful programs. Mehta also launched an innovative "Rising Stars" series of indoor recitals and chamber music programs featuring young talent.
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