![]() Excellent musicians should then be able to adjust their playing to match the beating of the conductor’s baton (the stick used) as long as they are clear. Again, every musician can play their music but it is ensuring that they all play their music exactly in time with the conductors controlled beats to allow consistency.Įven more importantly the conductor must ‘drive’ his musician like a car by adjusting the speed of the music smoothly and with command. The other mechanical aspect is to indicate the beats in a bar so that players can feel confident about the speed and accent of the music that they have in front of them. The conductor’s job is to homogenize the sound of 16 individuals into a perfect ‘section’ to allow the musical ideas to sound out clearly and precisely. Some will bow the notes quicker than others or have a slightly different phrasing or pressure on the strings. For example, a group of 16 violinists playing an identical rapid passage of music will have their own individual technique and interpretation. ![]() The mechanical role is to show the players basic information that will enable them all to play together as a tight unit. The job of the conductor can be split into two main roles embracing mechanical and expressive. Much like playing an instrument, these techniques are the foundation to build upon and should not be seen as advanced or embracing the subtleties that only comes with experience. In this article I will be discussing the importance of the conductor including their role and then some basic tips on how to conduct. It is not to say that without the conductor the musicians are reduced to clumsy and out of tune amateurs but rather that as in all areas of our life, sometimes a leader is required to keep things in good order. Whilst it is true that some conductors do use very grand and bold gestures when conducting, it must be stressed that the role they are playing is vitally important. We often imagine a conductor as a megalomaniacal eccentric frantically waving their hands around and impacting on the music very little. The act of conducting is an elusive and misunderstood art form that can often lead to confusion and sometimes ridicule.
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