Itzhak Perlman has begun conducting, making his Tanglewood debut this weekend. “Of course, as a virtuoso violinist Perlman can do anything he wants to. As a conductor, Perlman is not a virtuoso, but he turns that into a virtue by approaching everything simply and directly, never attempting to juice things up or impose himself on the music, and by releasing the musicians to play as personally, responsively, and expressively as he has always wanted to. They in turn carry him over the rough spots, and they had to.” – Boston Globe
“That’s not to say Perlman should quit his day job, should trade bow for baton, anytime soon – despite his appointment as principal guest conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra starting in 2001. His conducting style is certainly idiosyncratic.” – Boston Herald