Conductor Seiji Ozawa led his final concert Sunday as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra at the Tanglewood Music Festival.
Ozawa, who began his tenure with the orchestra in 1973, will be resigning in August to become musical director of the Vienna State Opera this fall.
He opened the final concert, named "Celebrating Seiji -- Seiji and the Boston Symphony Orchestra," with Hector Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique," for which he is renowned.
The concert ended with Beethoven's "Choral Fantasy," featuring the Tanglewood Festival Chorus and internationally acclaimed soloists, including Peter Serkin, Christine Goerke and Cynthia Haymon.
More than 10,000 people, including Japanese who traveled in from New York, took in the outdoor event on the rolling lawns of Lenox, Mass., to celebrate Ozawa's 29 years with the orchestra.
A teary Ozawa thanked the audience for supporting him for such a long time.
In an encore, Ozawa conducted Randall Thompson's "Alleluia," and invited listeners to sing along, adding that the song is personally meaningful for him.
Tanglewood has been the Boston Symphony's summer home for more than 60 years and attracts more than 300,000 visitors each season, according to festival organizers.
Ozawa made his debut concert with the symphony at the 1964 Tanglewood Music Festival. His last concert with the orchestra in Boston was held in April.