Early Career and The Krakow Philharmonic Years
Early in his career, Levine conducted orchestras both in Europe and the United States, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the NDR Sinfonie-Orchester Hamburg, and the Radio-Sinfonie Orchester-Berlin.
Levine first gained international notice when he became conductor and artistic director of the Kraków Philharmonic in 1987. He was the first American chief conductor of an Eastern European orchestra. His appointment was initially controversial because of the general consensus that Krzysztof Penderecki forced the choice of Levine on the orchestra. Under his leadership, the orchestra toured Europe, the major concert halls of North America, and the Far East, including the first visit by any Polish orchestra to South Korea. Under Levine, the Krakow Philharmonic also performed for the first time with such soloists as Emanuel Ax, Garrick Ohlsson, and Shlomo Mintz. Levine concluded his tenure in Krakow in 1993.
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