ABSTRACT
This chapter concludes a line of reasoning that stretches from leading a music ensemble to leading an organisation in a musical way. Although we could consider the conductor to be just any example of a leader, musical leadership unveils certain aspects of what goes on between leader and followers which should inform leadership in general. Specifically, musical leadership helps build a bridge between four opposite pairs: the importance of the role versus the person, the appearance versus the substance of leadership, leader traits versus relations and control versus empowerment. The power of the musical leader need not conflict with the leader’s perceptiveness to followers and attention to relationships; instead, they might complement and reinforce one another. In the musical moment, the conductor is most powerful when he or she senses the ensemble and the music perfectly.
