After violinists, pianists and singers, this fourth volume in the Great Musicians series is devoted to orchestra conductors. Orchestra specialist Christian Merlin provides portraits of 50 legendary 20th-century conductors, presented chronologically from Arturo Toscanini to Simon Rattle.
The book, which is both entertaining and well-documented, allows readers to understand the unique personality and genius of each conductor. The author describes each conductor's life and career, while at the same time revealing the keys to their artistry and selecting their most important recordings. In addition to comprising a portrait gallery of the century's greatest conductors, this book is also an excellent introduction to the art of conducting.

A CD with eight hours of music comes free with the book, allowing readers to hear excerpts of these great conductors' work.