Internationally acclaimed conductor Leonard Slatkin is music director laureate of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, directeur musical honoraire of the Orchestre National de Lyon, and conductor laureate of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. He maintains a rigorous schedule of guest conducting and is active as a composer, author, and educator. A six-time Grammy winner, Slatkin is a recipient of the National Medal of Arts and holds the rank of Chevalier in the French Legion of Honor. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his wife, composer Cindy McTee.
A great curriculum tells its students not so much what to think but how: what criteria can, or should, govern the choices one makes. After reading Leonard Slatkin’s Eight Symphonic Masterworks of the Nineteenth Century—a deeply informed and inspiring study—one feels prepared to step onto the podium to lead an orchestra in an interpretation both masterful and individual from the very first rehearsal. Both neophyte and experienced conductors will find this book a gift to treasure. -- Mark Adamo, composer-librettist