mbination of these attributes, and that the conductor of the
future, even more than of the past, must possess not only those
qualities of the artist needed by the solo performer, but must in
addition be a good business manager, an organizer, a tactician, a
diplomat, a task-master--in plain English, a good _boss_. It is
primarily because of the lack of these last-mentioned qualities that
most musicians fail as conductors. A writer in the _Canadian Journal
of Music_, signing himself Varasdin, sums it up well in the following
words:

He who wishes to "carry away" his body of players as well as
his audience, the former to a unanimously acted
improvisation, the latter to a unanimously felt emotion,
needs above all "commanding personal magnetism," and
everything else must be subordinate to that.

He must be "very much alive"--(highly accumulated vital
energy, always ready to discharge, is the secret of all
personal magnetism)--and the alertness, the presence of
mind, the acute and immediate perception of everything going
on during rehearsal or performance, the dominancy and
impressiveness of his minutest gesture, the absolute
self-possession and repose even in working up the most
exciting climaxes and in effecting the most sudden
contrasts--all these are simply self-evident corollaries
from our first and foremost requirement.

CHAPTER III

THE TECHNIQUE OF THE BATON

[Sidenote: THE BATON ITSELF]

Before giving actual directions for the manipulation of the
conductor's baton, it may be well to state that the stick itself
should be light in weight, light in color, and from sixteen to twenty
inches long. It must be thin and flexible, and should taper gradually
from the end held in the hand to the point. Batons of this kind can be
manufactured easily at any ordinary planing mill where there is a
lathe. The kinds sold at stores are usually altogether too thick and
too heavy. If at any time some adulating chorus or choir should
present the conductor with an ebony baton with silver mountings, he
must not feel that courtesy demands that it should be used in
conducting. The proper thing to do with such an instrument is to tie a
ribbon around one end and hang it on the wall as a decoration.

[Sidenote: THE CONDUCTOR'S MUSIC STAND]

A word about the music desk may also be in order at this time. It
should be made of wood or heavy metal so that i