The Conductor The most important person in an orchestra - the conductor - does not play an instrument at all. The conductor's job, at its most basic level, is to indicate the beat of the music. Most conductors use a long stick, called a baton, to make the beat as clear as possible. The conductor moves the baton towards several imaginary 'points' which indicate which beat in the bar the orchestra is currently playing. The conductor is also responsible for the preparation and rehearsal of the orchestra, and for making interpretative decisions - such as whether a certain passage should be slow, fast, soft, loud, smooth, aggressive, and so on. A conductor communicates these decisions both verbally (in rehearsal) and during the performance using different movements, gestures, and facial expressions. Back to the Orchestra John Curro AM MBE, conductor of the Queensland Youth Symphony Orchestra