To soothe the savage beast
10/10/02 — October 2 saw the world premiere of "Urban Legend," an orchestral piece by San Francisco Symphony musical director Michael Tilson Thomas. Conceptually, the work is based on a thoughtful inversion of one of the constant motifs in urban folklore — the unwelcome encroachment of nature, usually in the form of wayward wild animals, on the pristine, man-made environment of the city. In this story type, animal intrusions into homes and places of business invariably result in panic and chaos. The composer found himself wondering what such encounters must seem like from the beasts' point of view.

"In all modern cities," Thomas explains, "we find wild creatures living in close proximity to mankind. In Miami, alligators pop up all the time on golf courses and in swimming pools; in Santa Fe, where I composed most of this piece, bears wander into densely populated areas; coyotes now inhabit many of our cities. Legends have sprung up around such creatures, and I imagined how, in the future, they might develop into mythic beasts, roaming the cities with their own habits and ranges.