Wagner was present for the birth of the modern conductor, living and working during the period when the idea of a conductor evolved from a man sitting at the first violin desk setting tempi to the present role of one who personifies the composer's ideas. Because Wagner was also working as a conductor during these transformational years, his letters and the newspaper articles he wrote are filled with a wide perspective of the world of the conductor. In this book we have pulled together his views on The Conductor as a Man, The Education of the Conductor, The Ethics of Conducting and The Art of Conducting. In addition the book contains much information about his own experiences with bands and the complete background of his compositions for band. Here the reader will find the full story of the Trauermusik, including the speech Wagner gave at the first performance, and the details of the performance of the Huldigungsmarsch at the ground-breaking ceremonies of the opera house at Bayreuth and the speech Wagner gave on that occasion.