Levine, 62, also conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, fell onstage at Boston's Symphony Hall March 1 and tore the rotator cuff of his right shoulder.

Levine's surgery is scheduled March 20, the opening night of his production of "Fidelio," at the Met, The New York Times reported.

The loss of Levine for the remaining 10 weeks of the Met's season leaves the opera house scrambling to find replacements, the newspaper said.

In a statement released by the Met, Levine said expressed "enormous disappointment and frustration."

"The music I make with my wonderful colleagues at the Metropolitan Opera and the Boston Symphony is absolutely central to my life," he said. "I look forward to taking up the baton again as soon as humanly possible."

Levine has conducted more than 2,000 times at the Met, more shows than another conductor in its 123-year history.