He conducted the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra for the first time in 1966. In 1989, the orchestra elected him their Principal Conductor and Artistic Director.

Since then, twentieth century music has come to occupy a regular place in concert programmes alongside classical and romantic works. Every year, a particular theme provides a focus for the Orchestra's work, for example music inspired by the poetry of Hölderlin, Faust, the Greek Tragedy (Oedipus, Elektra, Medea), Shakespeare, Berg/Büchner, The Wanderer, and for the seasons 1998/99 and 1999/2000, The Myth of Love and Death. Also the Orchestra under Abbado has started concert performances of operas in the Philharmonie: Rossini‘s Il viaggio a Reims, Mussorgsky‘s Boris Godunov, Richard Strauss’ Elektra, Verdi‘s Otello, Alban Berg‘s Wozzeck, Schubert‘s Fierrabras, Wagner‘s Tristan und Isolde. For the season 1999/2000 Verdi's Simon Boccanegra is programmed.

In 1994 Claudio Abbado assumed the position of Artistic Director of the Salzburg Easter Festival.

In 1965 he conducted the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra for the first time. He was Music Director of the Vienna State Opera from 1986 to 1991 and has been „Generalmusikdirektor" of the City of Vienna since 1987.

He was Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra from 1979 to 1988. In 1985 he organized the festival "Mahler, Vienna and the 20th Century" in London.

Claudio Abbado has always been interested in furthering young musical talent. He is founder of the European Community Youth Orchestra (1978), founder and Music Director of the Gustav-Mahler-Jugendorchester (1986) and artistic advisor of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.

In 1988, he initiated "Wien modern", an annual event in Vienna which began as a festival for contemporary music and has since expanded to include all aspects of contemporary art.

In 1992, he launched, together with the cellist Natalia Gutman, an annual chamber music event in Berlin, "Berliner Begegnungen" (Encounters in Berlin). In collaboration with the Berlin Festival, experienced instrumentalists work together with talented young musicians to prepare in open rehearsals and to perform in concert works of classical and contemporary chamber music.

Abbado is equally interested in the promotion of young creative artists. Since 1991, an annual competition for young composers has been held in Vienna. Since 1994, prizes for composition, for the figurative arts and for literature have been awarded by the Salzburg Easter Festival.

Among the recordings of Claudio Abbado, which have won many international prizes, are the complete symphonic works of Beethoven, Mahler, Mendelssohn, Schubert, Ravel and Tchaikovsky. He has started on a Bruckner cycle, and the orchestral works of the "Viennese School" with the Vienna Philharmonic.

With the Berlin Philharmonic, Abbado has completed a Brahms cycle - symphonies, concertos and choral music - and has recorded Mahler’s First, Fifth and Eighth symphonies, music by Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Mussorgsky and Dvorak, Rossini's opera Il viaggio a Reims and Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. A cycle of Mozart’s symphonies has been launched and other recorded cycles of classical and romantic works are to follow.

Honours for Claudio Abbado include the Gran Croce of the Italian Republic, the Cross of the Légion d’Honneur, the Großes Verdienstkreuz of the German Federal Republic, the Ehrenring der Stadt Wien, the Großes Goldenes Ehrenzeichen of the Austrian Republic, honorary degrees from the Universities of Aberdeen, Ferrara and Cambridge, the Gold Medal of the International Gustav Mahler Society and the Ernst-von-Siemens-Musikpreis.

In February 1998 Claudio Abbado made the announcement that he did not wish to renew his contract as Artistic Director of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra beyond the season 2001/2002.

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