A directcatalyticasymmetricaldolreaction of thioamides with a soft Lewis acid/hard Brønsted base cooperative catalytic system comprising (R,R)-Ph-BPE/[Cu(CH(3)CN)(4)]PF(6)/LiOAr is described. Highly chemoselective deprotonative activation of thioamides allows for a directaldolreaction of alpha-nonbranched aliphatic aldehydes, which are susceptible to self-condensation. Facile reduction of the