Michael then took a three-week master class with conductor Hans Swarowsky and was invited to the first Cantelli Conducting Competition in Italy, which he won.
After 1984 he was active in North America, conducting the symphony orchestras in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Montreal, Philadelphia, St. Louis, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, and Washington D.C.
He also conducted at the Metropolitan Opera from 1989 to 1996, where he led performances of Die Fledermaus, Der Fliegende Holländer, and Fidelio.
[2] According to the obituary in The New York Times, "Mr. Michael had a special relationship with Seattle, where he appeared nearly every season as a guest with the opera company after making his American debut there in 1984.
He led three complete "Ring" cycles in Seattle, and regularly performed with the symphony."