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Leading Tones: Reflections on Music, Musicians and the Music Industry
Leading Tones is a glimpse into several aspects of the musical world. There are portions devoted to Leonard Slatkin's life as a musician and conductor, portraits of some of the outstanding artists with whom he has worked, as well as anecdotes and stories both personal and professional. Much of the book discusses elements of the industry that are troubling and difficult during this first part of the 21st century. Auditions, critics, fiscal concerns, and labor negotiations are all matters that today's conductors must be aware of, and this book provides helpful suggested solutions. Leading Tones is intended not only for musicians, but also for the music lover who wishes to know more about what goes into being a conductor.
- GenresMusic
312 pages, Hardcover
Published September 1, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 27, 2017
"Reflections' is a great description of Slatkin's second book. In a series of essays, Slatkin addresses themes and concerns regarding the music world and his experience.
The book is divided into four sections, titled Living With Music, Six of the Best, The Business of Music, and Wrapping Up. Included are two "interludes," The Mind Wanders and Lagniappe.
The Ten addresses Slatkin's favorite pieces to conduct, with several pages of commentary elucidating his choice. His 'desert island' choices include Beethoven's Symphony No 3, "Eroica", and Elgar's Symphony No. 2, which are being played in his final season (2017-18) with the DSO.
Six of the Best offers brief essays on musicians and conductors Slatkin has known and worked with, starting with Eugene Ormandy. Ormandy's "Philadelphia sound" was a favorite of my husband, and we often quipped that we moved to Philly just for the orchestra. The other five include violinist Nathan Milstein, pianist John Browning, the great violinist Isaac Stern (who I saw in performance with the Philadelphia Orchestra from a balcony seat over the stage!), Gilbert Kaplan, and the popular John Williams.
Pieces for a Lifetime sums up Slatkin's 50+ year career. He was the conductor of the St. Louis Orchestra when in April 1971, they premiered first live performance of Jesus Christ Superstar when it was still a 'rock opera.' (In October 1971 my then-fiance and I saw the rock opera performed in Columbus, OH.) Slatkin next moved to the National Symphony Orchestra before becoming music director at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO).
Under Slatkin, the DSO introduced twenty-nine world premieres, including the Arab-American Mohammed Fairouz's Cello Concerto, Desert Sorrows January 2016. The cellist was the amazing Maya Beiser, who is Jewish, and the premiere was performed at Congregation Shaarey Zedek, a Conservative synagogue. The synagogue is our favorite "neighborhood concert" venue, with ease of access, wonderful sound, and inspiring architecture. We were at the concert, an exciting, inspiring, and most memorable experience. The response was ecstatic.
The Business of Music considers the changing audition process. Stop the Music offers Slatkin's experience and insight into the Minnesota Orchestra strike, and how he used the experience to bring back the DSO after its strike.
Because we were not yet living in the Metro Detroit area I was unfamiliar with the DSO strike. But my husband and I are the happy beneficiaries of Slatkin's post-strike innovations, including attending Neighborhood Concerts, enjoying the DSO to Go app, and watching the televised Livestream concerts. For a reasonable donation, we can hear and view all the concerts, along with thousands across the world.
Other sections of the book include articles he has written, humorous stories, critic reviews, and "Slatkin on Slatkin."
I enjoyed reading Leading Tones and I learned quite a bit. The book is very accessible to non-musicians. Slatkin's personality and style is very approachable.
I received a free ebook from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
The book is divided into four sections, titled Living With Music, Six of the Best, The Business of Music, and Wrapping Up. Included are two "interludes," The Mind Wanders and Lagniappe.
The Ten addresses Slatkin's favorite pieces to conduct, with several pages of commentary elucidating his choice. His 'desert island' choices include Beethoven's Symphony No 3, "Eroica", and Elgar's Symphony No. 2, which are being played in his final season (2017-18) with the DSO.
Six of the Best offers brief essays on musicians and conductors Slatkin has known and worked with, starting with Eugene Ormandy. Ormandy's "Philadelphia sound" was a favorite of my husband, and we often quipped that we moved to Philly just for the orchestra. The other five include violinist Nathan Milstein, pianist John Browning, the great violinist Isaac Stern (who I saw in performance with the Philadelphia Orchestra from a balcony seat over the stage!), Gilbert Kaplan, and the popular John Williams.
Pieces for a Lifetime sums up Slatkin's 50+ year career. He was the conductor of the St. Louis Orchestra when in April 1971, they premiered first live performance of Jesus Christ Superstar when it was still a 'rock opera.' (In October 1971 my then-fiance and I saw the rock opera performed in Columbus, OH.) Slatkin next moved to the National Symphony Orchestra before becoming music director at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO).
Under Slatkin, the DSO introduced twenty-nine world premieres, including the Arab-American Mohammed Fairouz's Cello Concerto, Desert Sorrows January 2016. The cellist was the amazing Maya Beiser, who is Jewish, and the premiere was performed at Congregation Shaarey Zedek, a Conservative synagogue. The synagogue is our favorite "neighborhood concert" venue, with ease of access, wonderful sound, and inspiring architecture. We were at the concert, an exciting, inspiring, and most memorable experience. The response was ecstatic.
The Business of Music considers the changing audition process. Stop the Music offers Slatkin's experience and insight into the Minnesota Orchestra strike, and how he used the experience to bring back the DSO after its strike.
Because we were not yet living in the Metro Detroit area I was unfamiliar with the DSO strike. But my husband and I are the happy beneficiaries of Slatkin's post-strike innovations, including attending Neighborhood Concerts, enjoying the DSO to Go app, and watching the televised Livestream concerts. For a reasonable donation, we can hear and view all the concerts, along with thousands across the world.
Other sections of the book include articles he has written, humorous stories, critic reviews, and "Slatkin on Slatkin."
I enjoyed reading Leading Tones and I learned quite a bit. The book is very accessible to non-musicians. Slatkin's personality and style is very approachable.
I received a free ebook from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
December 3, 2018
Leonard Slatkin has some really good ideas about arranging concerts to introduce new music and music rarely heard and for fund-raising.
Since he wrote the book and titled it his reflections - it is about his career accomplishments.
An easy read - I recommend it.
Since he wrote the book and titled it his reflections - it is about his career accomplishments.
An easy read - I recommend it.
September 29, 2019
An interesting read. Parts were better written than others, but definitely an interesting read from the perspective of a conductor. I did enjoy the article about the violation of new European noise at work limits!
November 12, 2017
Absolutely love it when he conducts at the DSO.
Love his commentaries from the stage.
Enjoyed the first book, this one was interesting.
Love his commentaries from the stage.
Enjoyed the first book, this one was interesting.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews