8Lawrence D. Butch Morris (1947-2013) was an American jazz cornetist, composer and conductor, internationally considered one of the great musical innovators of our times. His interests in ensemble music--from avant-garde jazz to contemporary classical--crystallized into a unique method of real-time orchestral composition, which he called Conduction(R), designed to enable conductors to direct an ensemble. Morris toured the world, introducing Conduction to a varied community of musicians, and his influence extended into art, dance, poetry and cinema.

The Art of Conduction is a theoretical introduction and practical guide to Conduction. During the last 10 years of his life, Morris worked to document his method in this book form; his untimely death left it near finished. Finally Daniela Veronesi, a linguist and longtime collaborator, brings his manuscript to completion.