(Credit: Marco Borgrreve)

On March 31, 2025, conductor John Wilton Nelson died at the age of 83.

Born in Costa Rica, on Dec. 6, 1941, Nelson studied at Wheaton College and later at the Juilliard School of Music with Jean Morel.

Following his studies, he went on to become the music director of the Greenwich Philharmonia in Connecticut and the New Jersey Pro Arte Chorale. He also served on the conducting staff of the Metropolitan Opera.

In 1972, he made his New York City opera debut at Carnegie Hall in an uncut performance of Berlioz’s “Les Troyens.” He later made his Metropolitan Opera professional opera conducting debut also with “Les Troyens.” The work would become one of his signatures and Nelson would become associated with the works of Berlioz.

In an interview with Nelson regarding his recording of the work, he said, “My interpretation has matured to the point where every note in that piece is natural. For me it’s completely natural,” he noted. “I think for a lot of my colleagues Berlioz is an enigma and difficult to understand and they back away from him. But I’ve spent a lifetime doing all of his music and his language, while very original, is completely natural. It is the masterpiece of French operatic repertoire. ”

Nelson became the Music Director of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra from 1976 to 1987 and later joined the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as music director from 1985 to 1988, and principal conductor from 1988 to 1991.

He also held positions at the Caramoor Festival and the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris.

He made numerous recordings over the years, including Handel’s “Semele,” Berlioz’s”Béatrice et Bénédict,” “Te Deum,” “Benvenuto Cellini,” “Requiem,” and “La damnation de Faust.”