Problem is
A conductor who isn't sufficiently capable of holding it together usually isn't sufficiently capable of taking suggestions in good spirit.

If a musician/conductor is insecure, perceived criticism NEVER helps.
(roysin, Fri 4 Nov 2011, 10:28, 1 reply)

Nah, he's not insecure
It's just that we're playing a piece where the string parts are 1. Really high up and 2. The only things on the beat. They hear the wind playing on the offbeat and it throws them off, or at least it did in the first few rehearsals... and now they're quite tense about the section and getting it wrong just because no-one's told them to calm the fuck down and play it confidently.
(Sivvus trolley collision in the fruit aisle led to a jam, Fri 4 Nov 2011, 10:50, closed)

I work with a lot of young, insecure maestros. I've arrived at the point where I mentally approach rehearsals as performances, visualising the audience right there in the room. This entails high concentration and can be difficult and tiring, but does wonders for mental stamina; and practically eradicates altercations, as the energy is being positively channeled elsewhere. Plus, concerts are more relaxed.
(roysin, Fri 4 Nov 2011, 12:32, closed)

I'm glad for you
but I really don't think this is relevent for my story. My 'maestro' isn't insecure, he simply encountered an area of a piece where the performance is divided between the hectic technical difficulty, and the issue of concentrating on what the rest of the orchestra are doing. As a comparative example, if you can find a performance where the last section of the Polovetsian Dances is played perfectly or consistantly, I'd love to hear it! As a rule it doesn't happen.

Even though your own personal approaches may be fantastic, there's no way you can expect every member of the orchestra to work in exactly the same way.
(Sivvus trolley collision in the fruit aisle led to a jam, Fri 4 Nov 2011, 13:40, closed)