Customer Reviews

The Grammar of Conducting: A Comprehensive Guide to Baton Technique and Interpretation

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you ever wanted to know anything (repeated for emphasis: anything) about conducting, this is truly your book. Related somewhat to Leinsdorf's Composer's Advocate, this book contains every topic on conducting I was able to conceive of. Beat patterns, as well as orchestral exerpts, are given to the reader to illustrate many important tips that (I'm sure) the aspiring conductor will find quite useful. If you, in your wildest dreams, have ever even once contemplated conducting, you will want to sincerely consider this book.

This is the standard conducting text for major music schools in America (for example, I use it at the music school I attend). It's a fantastic book, with many elaborate and descriptive drawings to help the student along. There are hundreds of examples and exercises to help learn all the techniques and there are several additional sections on rehearsal, conducting opera, choir, and band, score preperation suggestions, notes on styles of certain composers and conductors, and sections about bowed string parts.

This is a great book for study conducting. A lot of examples and tips. And all the diagrams for all the rythtym music patterns.

My conducting teacher said that this was the best book there is for learning how to conduct. I agree with him. The chapters are well organized and the language is simple.

When I was a conducting student in the USA I was largely taught from this book. I found it simplistic then and still feel the same. It is not in the same league as something like Gunther Schuller's The Complete Conductor, Prausnitz' Score and Podium, or the more recent Morgenstern No Vivaldi in the Garage.