Peter Gelb, head of New York’s Metropolitan Opera since 2006, gives an inaugural lecture on the importance of the arts and culture, in memory of Rudolf Bing, the founder of the International Festival, presented in association with Edinburgh Jewish Cultural Centre. An award-winning producer of films, recordings, radio broadcasts, operas, and festivals, Gelb has worked with many of the world’s leading artists.

Peter Gelb’s career has followed a singular arc that began with his teenage years as an usher at the Metropolitan Opera and led to his appointment, in August 2006, as the company’s 16th general manager. Now in his 16th year at the helm of the Met, Mr. Gelb has overseen a number of initiatives aimed at revitalizing opera and connecting it to a wider audience since the start of his tenure. He has also made a priority of revitalizing the repertory with commissions of numerous new works and new productions of both classic operas and modern masterpieces, overseeing more than 85 new stagings by some of the world’s greatest opera and theater directors.

As an award-winning producer of films, recordings, radio broadcasts, telecasts, concert events, operas, and festivals, he worked with many of the world’s leading artists prior to becoming Met General Manager. From 1995 until joining the Met, Mr. Gelb was president of Sony Classical, one of the largest international classical record labels, which he led through a period of notable growth and creativity.