ZUBIN Mehta, famous for his flamboyance and energy, looked tired, as well he might be after conducting music to heal and inspire in Japan after the triple catastrophe. That trip was cut short.

The maestro then arrived in Shanghai to conduct the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale of Florence in a Mahler commemoration - and a requiem to victims of Chinese and Japanese earthquake victims.

Mehta was also promoting the Chinese translation of his autobiography "The Score of My Life" (2006).

The previous night was a conducting workout for the 100th anniversary of Mahler's death this year.

The media had been chasing Mehta as soon as he landed from his Japan tour, keen to ask him about Japan and the story of his life now available to Chinese readers.

Mehta, one of the luminaries of the music world, has received virtually every honor, conducted most major orchestras and cooperated with most of the world's distinguished soloists.

He calls conducting "the most beautiful job in the world."

He has conducted the New Year's Concert in Vienna four times, received the Nikisch Ring, the Vienna Philharmonic Ring of Honor, brought the three tenors together on the same stage and produced Italian composer Puccini's opera "Turandot" in the Forbidden City in China's capital Beijing.

The Mumbai-born Mehta is now music director of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and chief conductor of Orchestra del Maggio Musicale of Florence. At age 75, he still forges ahead, traveling and conducting.

"Music is and will always be the main part of my life," Mehta said at an interview after his book promotion.

The autobiography was first published in German on his 60th birthday in 2006. It is considered rare for a person like Mehta who "prefers to look forward rather than look back" to set down his earlier days; at 60 he was at the peak of his powers, and still is.

"Still, I want to share my experiences over the past 50 years as a conductor. I hope young conductors can learn from my mistakes," he said.

When asked the secrets to being a successful conductor, he said: "A conductor is like a walking encyclopedia. He has to know all styles of music and instruments, and have good command of the whole orchestra. He has to be a good communicator, to communicate with the troupe through rehearsals and with the audience during the concerts."

At the Shanghai Grand Theater, Mehta conducted three Verdi overtures, "Sicilian Vespers," "Luisa Miller" and "The Force of Destiny," and the original version of Mahler's Symphony No. 1 in D Major, "The Titan."

Earlier Mehta and the orchestra had been performing in Japan but the tour was disrupted by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami on March 11. They continued to play but finally had to cancel concerts due to lack of electricity.

To express sympathy for both Japanese and Chinese earthquake victims, the Shanghai concert opened with "Air on G String," the second movement of Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068. The audience was asked to not applaud.

"I believe music can bring inner peace to people. As a musician, I love to be a conveyer of the healing power of music," Mehta said. "Never underestimate the power of music, kid." Throughout his career as a conductor, he has dedicated himself to transmitting this power.

Under Mehta's baton in 1990, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, in black tuxedos, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in white, played a joint concert in Tel Aviv, Israel. It was the first such ensemble since the end of World War II.

Staged in the Frederic Mann Auditorium, 160 musicians from both orchestras, with paired performers sharing one music stand, played Israeli composer Paul Ben-Haim's "Psalm" and Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67.

The concert was a historic coming together against the backdrop of vividly remembered German persecution and mass murder of Jews in World War II.

Mehta is no stranger to controversy and persists in trying to bridge differences through music. In 1981 he was booed by offended Israelis when he conducted Wagner, an anti-Semite whose glorious music was embraced by the Nazis.

Toward the end of the Bosnian war in 1994, he staged in Sarajevo's destroyed National Library, conducting the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra in Mozart's "Requiem." It was broadcast to 26 cities worldwide, raising money for the United Nations Refugee Fund.

When staging "Turandot" in Beijing in 1998, he and the orchestra turned the original luncheon concert to a nonprofit performance to raise funds for Chinese victims of catastrophic flooding that year. Mehta and his wife Nancy personally donated US$20,000.

In 1999, he brought together the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the Bavarian State Opera Orchestra for a concert in historic Tiefurt Park, not far from the site of the Buchenwald concentration camp in the German city of Weimar.

To honor Mehta's continuous efforts, the United Nations presented him with a "Lifetime Achievement Peace and Tolerance Award" in 1999.

"I think people from different nations should communicate with each other instead of kill each other," Mehta wrote in his autobiography.

"Luckily, I can make them forget about their conflicts through music, even for only a few hours. As long as my music can make them forget to resent, my effort isn't wasted.

"This is also the inner drive behind a lot of things I've been doing for minorities in my whole life ... To be faithful to the primitive voice from my heart, I will keep doing this again and again," he added.

"I feel very satisfied every time I help others fix their problems with my small wisdom or small power."

In 1936, Mehta was born into a musician's family in Mumbai (then Bombay). Influenced by his violinist father, who was founding conductor of the Bombay Symphony Orchestra, Mehta went on to study music in Vienna. He initially had studied medicine but gave it up.

He made his mark as a conductor by winning the International Conducting Competition in Liverpool in 1958, and was appointed assistant conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra that year.

He quickly rose to the rank of chief conductor and worked with numerous distinguished orchestras. He subsequently headed orchestras such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic and Israeli Philharmonic.

To most Chinese people, Mehta is the flamboyant conductor who teamed up with Chinese director Zhang Yimou in 1998 and staged the Western opera "Turandot" in a Ming Dynasty (1368-1664) setting in the Forbidden City. He has called the shows "breathtakingly gorgeous."

Critics praised the performance as a perfect blend of Eastern and Western cultures. But concerning a dialogue between Eastern and Western music, the master said at the press conference after his book promotion, "There's no need for the two to be mixed up together."

"Chinese music has absorbed something from the West, which is good. Indian music is the same. But they also have their own traditions, which they should keep. Eastern and Western music can develop separately. We can keep the traditions while enjoying the Western music."

Shanghai stands out among Mehta's memories of China. He has visited the city five times since 1994 but still remembers the first time. It was a rainy day and people in rain slickers were riding their bicycles. "It was poetic," Mehta said.

Though he has not conducted a Chinese orchestra, he said China's young musicians are making steady progress. "In the coming decade, they will definitely reach a very high standard. You just need to have some patience."

As for conducting in China, Mehta said, "I almost feel the audience's passion pouring onto the stage."

Thoughts and memories from the maestro of peace

Excerpts from "The Score of My Life" (2006), just published in Chinese.

On "Turandot" in the Forbidden City

It wasn't an easy job to convince China's Cultural Minister to join our adventure ... When he finally agreed that we could bring "Turandot" into the Forbidden City (in 1998), I still clearly remember how excited I was. To express my gratitude to him later, I specially sent him a big box of mangos from India.

Playing Wagner in Israel (1981)

This concert totally accords with our aims: We provide the audience a chance to throw away their own claims and grudges, only if it is through a concert that lasts a couple of hours.

As a musician, I have no reason to ignore the tremendous contributions Richard Wagner has made to music. And I believe a democratic country like Israel has no tolerance for ravaging this kind of music. But after the concert, I truly felt that I failed at that time to understand the feelings of the survivors from concentration camps. We should've respected their feelings. But I believe in the near future that people in Israel can truly accept Richard Wagner's music without scruples.

No artistic isolation

No matter how, I don't believe an artist can escape to an isolated and protected place to create so-called art. I don't quite agree with the saying "Live for art, live for love" from "Tosca."

Music a beacon of light

There are many people in this world whose concerns and demands are always neglected. But I still firmly believe that music can bring a beacon of light and hope to their dark and depressed life. Even if through a several-hour-long concert, they can find spiritual comfort.

On conducting, communication

Conducting is, to a large extent, communicating. It helps when there is a good level of understanding between the two parties, that is, when they understand each other without anything being said, in other words before we begin to play or conduct. When the orchestra and the conductor communicate so well as a team, as in the case of the Israel Philharmonic and me, then it is always possible to reach a true musical consensus. In this case it is not about striving for the lowest common denominator, but rather aiming at the maximum attainable.

An Indian at heart

Even now, I still strongly feel from my heart that I am an Indian. But it was in Austria that my thoughts matured and my music style was shaped. I know my spirits belong to this country ... Vienna deeply influenced my understanding of music and it has never changed.

Playing for Palestinians

(Having been warned of possible terrorist interruptions) I was once frightened. During the open-air concert (in Bethlehem, Palestine), I felt several times as if someone pointed a gun or some other weapon to my head. Only when I thought I was standing on the side of justice did I feel a bit safe in such an explosive situation.

On marriage vows

I deeply offended my wife and hurt her unendingly when I had another son in Israel 18 years ago. I know that I inflicted a lot of pain on Nancy on that occasion. I can never thank her enough for bearing this pain and not leaving me, hurt and humiliated. It must certainly have been dreadful for her to find out first from me and then from newspapers that a son was born of a brief affair. The fact that she did not leave me helped me a lot in dealing with my mistake and the difficulties that followed.

Understanding takes time

The tactical understanding between the orchestra and the conductor can't be quickly established after a couple of rehearsals. Even if you cooperate with the top class orchestras, the understanding doesn't come easily. At least, I can't, and I don't hope so.

Always learning

If you listen to or consult experienced musicians, or carefully observe their skills and talents, you will surely benefit a lot. As a conductor, you should be prepared to at any time accept advice from other members in the orchestra.

Digging the LA vibe

I always treat my days in Los Angeles as an intense period of learning. I also enjoy meeting different actors, directors, film producers, singers and jazz musicians. You can find all types of geniuses or freaks in Hollywood.