Igor Stravinsky Many people, including myself, are fooled by the illusion of a conductors power and musical genius

as he controls an entire orchestra with the flick of his hand. In this passage, Igor Stravinsky points out that in reality, there is a great divide between a musical conductor and the music he supposedly creates. Furthermore, he views them as more of a distraction, not worthy to conduct music. Using effective diction, comparisons, and tone, Stravinsky conveys his disdain for conductors and convinces his readers of these views as well. From the very beginning Stravinsky links conducting with the more impure aspects of society. Conducting for him is like politics, which rarely attracts original minds and involves the exploitation of personalities. He also emphasizes the little skills and standardized disciplines are needed to conduct, but is only a way to make a career. It seems that conductors are primarily concerned about improving their social status, rather than on music. Finally, he further drives his negative views he describes them as incomplete musicians but rather compleat anglers whos first skill must be power politics, again comparing conductors to politicians, an easily understood connecting, as politicians are known for their deceitful platforms and fleeting promises. Starting from the first paragraph Stravinskys direct personality and disregard for those he perceives as inferior clearly prevails with his condescending tone. To continue his argument in the second paragraph, Stravinsky not only shows conductors insignificance, accusing them of being nasty to their core. Not only do they have an ego disease, they seem to be a disease themselves, growing like a tropical week under the sun of a pandering public and infecting the orchestras they conduct. He then uses diction like false, arbitrary, trap, and mistaking that has a negative connotation to shock the reader with its harshness. Again emphasizing conductors lack of skill, he argues that great conductors, like great actors cannot play anything but themselves and lack the ability to adapt, so instead the must adapt the work to themselves. Stravinsky once said that music is incapable of expressing anything but itself. In this paragraph his love for pure music shows through his evident disgust in conductors who are the worst obstacle to genuine music-making and therefore have no real value in the musical community. So much so, his passion becomes infectious to the reader. Finally, in the last paragraph, the authors sharp tone shifts to one filled with sarcasm, irony, and mocking. He describes the conductors expression of noble suffering during Beethovens Eroica and their ridiculous corybantics. Then, he explains the merciful limitation to the dorsal view, dehumanizing conductors and further making them seem foolish in his readers minds. In the last sentence Stravinsky emphasizes you and are to suggest that only those who do not truly understand music can be thoughtlessly wooed by a conductors mannerisms, undoubtedly trying to shame most of his audience, and therefore making his argument more effective. Through accessible yet provoking language, comparisons to politicians and actors who are widely known for their impure intentions, and a critical yet mocking tone, Igor Stravinsky shares his clear distaste for conductors and effectively

convinces his readers on these negative views. Similar to his innovative reinvention of the ballet and the avant-garde thinking behind his The Rite of Spring this piece enlightens us with a refreshing style and a controversial view into the reality of conductors.