The conductor embodies norm and individualization in a totalitarian figure

Evidence

Not for nothing does the rule of the established conductor remind one of that of the totalitarian Fuhrer. Like the latter, he reduces aura and organization to a common denominator. He is the real modern type of the virtuoso, as bandleader as well as in the Philharmonic. He has got to the point where he no longer has to do anything himself; he is even sometimes relieved of reading the score by the staff musical advisers. At one stroke he provides norm and individualization: the norm is identified with his person, and the individual tricks which he perpetrates furnish the general rules. — Theodor W. Adorno, The Culture Industry, 90

Categorization

Category: Causal Relationships

• SEED: A direct template for analyzing the modern auteur or star-curator — the algorithmic ‘taste-maker’ who provides norm and pseudo-individualization at one stroke, from Spotify playlists to film-programming auteurs.