“When Leonard Slatkin’s book, ‘Conducting Business,’ was published in 2012, he thought it would be a one-off,” writes David Lyman in Sunday’s (9/10) Detroit Free Press. “He’s a conductor, after all, with a demanding schedule as music director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra… Slatkin … was revealed to be an engaging and personable author…. His second book, ‘Leading Tones: Reflections on Music, Musicians and the Music Industry’ is scheduled to be released Tuesday.… ‘Leading Tones’ is relaxed and admirably understated…. With the help of his editor, former Detroit News culture writer Lawrence B. Johnson, this collection of writings comes across even more personal and easygoing…. He offers up a list of works that he finds particularly pleasurable to conduct… Slatkin devotes two sections of the book to ‘Interludes.’ Especially memorable is the one titled ‘The Mind Wanders.’ They are short reflections on whatever seemed to be crossing his mind at the moment. He ruminates on dated pre-concert rituals, errors in concert programs and conductors’ preshow comments to the audience…. This time around, he interviews himself and asks questions he seldom, if ever, hears. Some are strictly professional…. Others are more probing.”
Posted September 12, 2017
