, the charismatic conductor who ushered a part-time Portland ensemble into the ranks of major orchestras, died Friday of complications from a heart attack at the age of 76. His wife, Ginette DePreist, said he suffered a massive heart attack in March, followed by open-heart surgery. Since then, he had been in and out of the hospital.

"He had lots of setbacks," Ginette DePreist said. "He knew his days as a conductor were over."

In the past few weeks, his kidneys started to fail and he decided to stop fighting, she said.

For 23 years, DePreist stood at the center of Oregon's artistic community as music director of the

. Appointed in 1980 on the basis of a single concert three years earlier, DePreist engineered the biggest changes in the orchestra's history, staying longer than any of his eight predecessors.

and spent the past 10 years living in Scottsdale, Ariz., while teaching conducting at New York's Juilliard School and, until two years ago, leading the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra.

DePreist articulated better than anybody the orchestra's role as a symbol of civic sophistication. The Oregon Symphony became known simply as "the symphony" and drew more people each year than any cultural or sports group except the Trail Blazers.

DePreist's wit and intelligence proved irresistible to politicians and wealthy donors as well as to waiters and cab drivers, who called him "Jimmy." His timing helped, too. He arrived three years after the Trail Blazers won the NBA title and capitalized on the idea that every serious city needs a professional orchestra, too. Within four years of his arrival, he moved the Oregon Symphony into a new home in the newly renovated Paramount Theatre on Southwest Broadway and upgraded the group to full-time status. The changes vaulted the Oregon Symphony into the ranks of the country's 34 largest orchestras.

"It was a matter of politics," DePreist said years later. "If you want a new concert hall, it involves getting the right people who can support the move. That was new."

He often used humor to disarm friends as well as strangers. Niel DePonte, the orchestra's principal percussionist, helped choose DePreist and recalls the day the conductor met the orchestra. The door opened and in walked a large, imposing, African-American man on crutches. He squeezed between the cellos and made his way to the podium. Slowly, he climbed onto the conductor's box, sat on his stool, took a crutch in each hand, looked at the musicians and threw the crutches on the floor with a crash.

The room went quiet, then he said, "Well, it worked for Oral Roberts."

"We believed he had the inspirational energy that would move the orchestra forward," DePonte said Friday. "You had to like his infectious humor and the greatness of the man. His involvement of the musicians in a very collaborative way changed the artistic culture of the orchestra -- everything from working with us to choose musicians in auditions to embracing our ideas for programming to outreach into the community."

DePreist, one of the first black conductors to have a major career, came from a musical family. Born in Philadelphia in 1936, he was the nephew of the late contralto

, who in 1955 became the first black singer to break the color barrier at New York's Metropolitan Opera. After earning a bachelor's degree at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a master's degrees from the Annenberg School for Communication at the same university, he led orchestras in Quebec, Malmö (Sweden) and Monte Carlo and frequently appeared at the prestigious Aspen Music Festival.

He conducted major orchestras in North America and Europe and made his London debut with the London Symphony Orchestra in 2005, leading Mahler's Symphony No. 5, which was recorded and later released by Naxos. From 2005 to 2008, he led the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra and from 2004 to 2011, he directed the conducting and orchestral studies program at The Juilliard School. He directed the Britt Festivals in southern Oregon. He made more than 50 orchestral recordings, including a Shostakovich cycle with the Helsinki Philharmonic, plus 17 recordings with the Oregon Symphony.

DePreist wrote two books of poetry and earned 14 honorary doctorates. He was elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. He received the Insignia of Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland, the Medal of the City of Quebec and an Officer of the Order of Cultural Merit of Monaco. In 2005, President George W. Bush presented him with the National Medal of Arts, the nation's highest honor for artistic excellence.

Other highlights of his Portland tenure include making the orchestra's first commercial recording, in 1987, recording the soundtrack for his friend Bill Cosby's TV show, in 1988, taking the group to the Hollywood Bowl in 1992 and leading the orchestra's first statewide tour during its centennial season in 1996.

Over the years, DePreist battled health problems that sometimes prevented him from conducting. In 1962, he contracted polio while in Southeast Asia, requiring the use of two crutches for many years. Later in life, he used a motorized chair. In 2001, he received a kidney after years of dialysis. Three years later, he canceled a return to Portland to undergo spinal surgery after experiencing numbness and tingling in his legs.

His kidney disease took a toll on the Oregon Symphony, as did his increasingly frequent absences from Portland to guest conduct in Europe and Asia. He appeared less engaged at home, conducting with less urgency. He left behind more tangible disappointments, the main one being Schnitzer Hall's deficient acoustics, which continue to vex musicians and audiences.

In addition to his wife, Ginette, he is survived by two daughters, Tracy and Jennifer, from his first marriage to Betty Childress.

The orchestra plans to perform a piece to honor DePreist at concerts this weekend.

"His contribution as an artistic leader, his vision as a musician, are the foundation on which we all rely when we do our concerts," said Carlos Kalmar, who took over the orchestra from DePreist. "I had the opportunity of speaking to him on several occasions and found him to be a warm-hearted, considerate and supporting colleague. He was a humble, great man and loved the orchestra and this place very much."

DePreist may have dreamed of more prestigious posts -- he was shortlisted for the National Symphony in Washington, D.C. -- but they didn't come. About his career, he was a realist. One of his favorite sayings was "Anticipate no gains and expect no losses."

Despite his artistic achievements, he brought a down-to-earth approach to conducting.

"You come in, identify the problems, methodically go after one, then another, and leave the place better than when you arrived."

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