The act of conducting is an elusive and misunderstood art form that can often lead to confusion and sometimes ridicule. We often imagine a conductor as a megalomaniacal eccentric frantically waving their hands around and impacting on the music very little. 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.
It is not to say that without the conductor the musicians are reduced to clumsy and out of tune amateurs …