What leaders in any field can learn from legendary conductors and their mixtures of control and letting go.

A conductor in front of his orchestra is an iconic symbol of leadership—but what does a maestro actually do in order to create unity, excellence and harmony? And how can a leader in other fields, remote from violin playing and Mozart, benefit from observing orchestral conductors?

Itay Talgam explores the different ways a maestro can work with his orchestra, by examining the leadership styles of six of the most famous and distinctive conductors of all time: the commanding Ricardo Muti, the fatherly and passionate Arturo Toscanini, the calm Richard Strauss, the guru-like Herbert von Karajan, the dancing Carlos Kleiber, and the master of dialogue Leonard Bernstein.

Against the backdrop of traditional controlling leadership, Talgam shows how great contemporary leadership mixes control and letting go, promotes new knowledge by choosing to be ignorant, creates unity through embracing gaps, and enhances leadership effectiveness by adopting keynote listening.

Using the same universal tools, leaders can conduct their organizations to their maximum potential—whether in business, education, government, sports, or any other field.