Thomas W Warren wrote:
>In mentioning Kurt Masur, why doesn't he use a baton? I don't know
>of another major conductor that does not use one.
Not sure of other symphonic conductors, but I've always heard (from a
conducting class I took in college and from other places) that choral
conductors often don't use a baton. The difference is that singers have
their music closer to their faces and can see the different hand gestures
used because they have more "visual range". Being an instrumentalist, all
I ever wanted was a clear down beat and some indication of dynamics (if
they weren't marked in the score). The baton gives this clear down beat.
-Lindsey Orcutt
[log in to unmask]