Class Details

Open to all PACO students

Tap into your inner Maestro and find out what a conductor really does up there. This course will introduce you to all aspects of a conductor’s craft, from reading a score to developing clear and expressive baton technique. Along the way, we’ll learn about the instruments in the orchestra, how they sound, where they sit, how to cue, and how to manage them in a rehearsal. Through excerpts from well-known orchestral works we’ll learn beat patterns and “conductor choreography”, and have a chance to conduct your own virtual orchestra.

An intermediate level of music theory is strongly recommended, but not required.

Sundays @ 3:45

Class Meetings:

3/14, 3/21, 3/28, 4/4, 4/11, 4/18, 4/25, 5/2, 5/9, 5/16

Class ZOOM Link

Instructor Email:

[email protected]

Instructor Bio

Ben Simon has been the Music Director of the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra since 2002, the same year he began his tenure with the professional San Francisco Chamber Orchestra. A violist by training and a chamber musician at heart, Ben finds conducting a challenging and multi-faceted activity and is looking forward to sharing his experience with our budding maestri within the PACO community.