As musical director of the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra, he supported America's cultural diplomacy initiatives in Europe after World War II.
His mother immediately recognized her son's natural musical gifts and encouraged him to perform with amateur orchestras while attending both parochial and public school.
Undaunted, Lewis persevered and in Junior High School he undertook studies in both voice and the double bass, reasoning that his professional endeavors might be improved since double-bass players were rare.
[4] In 1948, at the age of 16, Lewis was invited to join the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the baton of Alfred Wallenstein, becoming the first African-American instrumentalist in a major symphony orchestra.
In addition to continuing his performances on the double-bass, Lewis also conducted the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra in Stuttgart, Germany and the Netherlands while serving in the United States Armed Forces (1955–1956).
[2][6][7][8][9] Under his musical direction, the orchestra concertized throughout Europe in support of America's cultural diplomacy initiatives during the post World War II era.
[10][11][12] His commanding officer noted that his imagination, artistic talent and devotion to his responsibilities as a conductor played an important role in enhancing European-American relations.
The music critic Albert Golberg of the Los Angeles Times observed that Lewis exhibited a conductor's natural flair for command during the performance.
Lewis was determined to shatter the myth that classical music is essentially an elitist art form and patiently scheduled performances at outdoor concert venues as well as local high school auditoriums throughout New Jersey.
By citing excerpts from the symphonic literature, Lewis strove to introduce students to the varied tonal qualities inherent within the instruments of the modern orchestral ensemble while also emphasizing the central role played by the string section.
[18][21] His Metropolitan Opera Orchestra debut in 1972 featured a performance of Puccini's La bohème with Anna Moffo in the role of Mimi and Richard Tucker as Rodolfo.
[26][4] He first appeared with the orchestra in 1965 while collaborating with the pianist Earl Wild in a George Gershwin Night outdoor concert at the landmark Lewisohn Stadium in Manhattan, New York.
While conducting at The Met from 1972-1977 he collaborated with several leading operatic vocalists including: James McCracken as Don José in Bizet's Carmen (1973), Luciano Pavarotti as Rodolfo and Pilar Lorengar as Mimi in Puccini's La bohème (1973), Franco Corelli as Roméo and Adriana Maliponte as Juliette in Gounod's Roméo et Juliette (1974), Enrico Di Giuseppe as Lindoro in Rossini's L'italiana in Algeri (1974), Elinor Ross as Amelia and Luciano Pavarotti as Riccardo in a Gala Performance of Verdi's Un ballo in maschera (March 1975) and Renata Scotto as Berthe and James McCracken as Jean of Leyden in Meyerbeer's Le Prophéte (1977).
Yet it is also clear that he was quite comfortable conducting compositions from the dawn of the era of symphonic jazz, including George Gershwin's Piano Concerto in F and An American in Paris.
Yet he also collaborated with his wife Marilyn Horne in recordings of cantatas and songs by composers from the Baroque era including Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel.
[4] Harold C. Schonberg of The New York Times observed that his insightful interpretation of Rossini's Siege of Corinth with Marilyn Horne at Carnegie Hall moved the audience to pandemonium.
Included among them are recordings of: Le prophète by Giacomo Meyerbeer (CBS, 1976) featuring James McCracken (as Jean of Leyden), Renata Scotto (as Berthe) and Horne in the role of Fides.