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Caffeine: The Conductor's Role Conducting.  It’s nothing more
than down-left-right-up, telling singers which notes they
missed, and preening on stage, right? Wrong.  Oh, so very
wrong.  When done correctly, the successful choral conductor
melds musicianship, leadership, artistry, and a special
intangible something that inspires singers to follow their
conductor into the heart of musical and poetic vulnerably.  In
his article, “Reflections on the Conductors Role” (North Central
Melisma, Fall 2006), Joseph Flummerfelt, shares a few thoughts
on the conductor’s art:        I believe conducting is much more
about connection and far less about controlling. To be sure, we
strongly influence and, in a certain sense, control the dynamic
and energetic properties of the musical line. We clearly set the
tempo and determine the timing between sections and movements,
etc.        Choral artistry can only emerge when an intimate
depth of communication exists betw