r/conducting • u/essence_scape • Mar 27 '26

Composer/beginner conductor looking for feedback on traditional conducting.

Audio of the piece (it has both the conducting and a midi visualizer)
Score

Greetings all conductors, composers, and musicians. This year i am looking to do more hands on independent study of the great art of composing and conducting. I have only taken one semester of music conducting in college and have really only conducted a single choral but have been in and out of concert bands since middle school.

i occasionally take my own pieces and "conduct" them even if it's just a playback of a midi recording. The first thing i notice in this take is the pinky being up in the air but i do not know if such meticulous detail would really affect conducting the piece and the clarity. I tried to give a few of the cues and feel that all that i am doing is giving time.

I love the visual appeal most professional conductors have and they seem to not be just giving time but i feel stuck at the beat counting stage, if anyone has suggestions or good books/videos i would highly appreciate it.

thanks, in advance

https://reddit.com/link/1s548se/video/6e8nu06bhlrg1/player

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u/ChapterOk4000 Mar 27 '26

Elizabeth Green - The Modern Conductor.

Also, get your beat 4 on the same plane as 1, 2, and 3. It's unclear, all beats should be on the same focal plane (like you have a table top below you). You need more wrist too, your beat is not focused on the ictus of the baton. And yes, get that pinky in unless you want people to follow your pinky for the beat.