When an orchestra truly transcends, when a familiar score takes flight in an unexpected blaze of glory, it's rarely by accident.
While skilled ensembles can tackle complex works without a conductor’s overt guidance, the greatest maestros elevate performances from competent to transcendent. Through deep knowledge, rigorous preparation, clear vision, and inspiring leadership, they draw out interpretations that linger long after the final note.
But who inspires the inspirers? We asked 100 of today’s top conductors to name three who shaped their own artistry. The Top 20 they chose reveals a compelling musical legacy.
Best conductor: music's finest maestros
21. Eugene Ormandy (1899-1985)
Across an incredible 45-year tenure, Ormandy built the Philadelphia Orchestra into one of the world's most recognisable and bankable orchestras, known everywhere for its lush, rich 'Philadelphia Sound'. He's remembered for his vast recording legacy, technical precision, and commitment to a wide repertoire from the Romantic era to contemporary music. His speciality was probably late Romanticism from Tchaikovsky to Sibelius but, in reality, Ormandy was extraordinary across a wide raft of music.
Discover Ormandy: Sibelius Symphony No. 7 | Philadelphia Orchestra (Sony Essential Classics)
20. Yevgeny Mravinsky (1903-88)
Yevgeny Mravinsky inherited the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra in 1938, and was largely responsible for maintaining the Austro-German tradition through the fraught years of Stalin’s Terror. He also conducted the hugely successful 1937 premiere of Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony, a performance that almost certainly saved the composer’s life, and went on to premiere five more of Shostakovich's symphonies. We named Mravinsky one of the best Shostakovich conductors ever.
Discover Mravinsky: Tchaikovsky Symphonies Nos 4-6 | Leningrad PO (DG 477 5911)
19. Marin Alsop (b. 1956)
American conductor Marin Alsop was the first woman to conduct the Last Night of the Proms, in 2013. She's also the first woman to serve as the head of a major orchestra in the United States, South America, Austria and Britain. And she's been a key figure in the emergence of more female conductors. Another major landmark came in 2007, when she became chief conductor at Baltimore - the first-ever woman to lead a major American symphony orchestra.
Discover Alsop: Schumann Symphonies 3 & 4 (arr. Mahler) | Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra / Marin Alsop Naxos 8.574430
18. Pierre Monteux (1875-1964)
Early in his career Pierre Monteux conducted several premieres for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, including Stravinsky's Rite of Spring: while the audience rioted, Monteux coolly conducted that complex score to the end. He shared with Toscanini the belief that the composer’s score was sacrosanct – with the difference that Monteux was dearly loved by his players. His conducting pupils include Sir Neville Marriner, André Previn and David Zinman.
Discover Monteux: Debussy Images | London Symphony Orchestra (Eloquence 476 8472)
17. Georg Solti (1912-97)
Georg Solti enjoyed an illustrious 22-year tenure with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, where he performed and recorded acclaimed cycles of the Brahms, Bruckner, Beethoven and Mahler symphonies. Think of Solti and another famous endeavour comes to mind: his mighty traversal of Wagner's Ring Cycle, a landmark recording project which remains one of the most iconic recordings in classical music history. Indeed, the latter finished strongly in our top 50 best recordings of all time.
Discover Solti: Wagner Ring Cycle | Christa Ludwig, Birgit Nilsson, Kirsten Flagstad, Hans Hotter et al; Vienna Philharmonic/Solti (Decca)
16. Bernard Haitink (1929-2021)
Bernard Haitink’s career was launched in 1956 when he stepped in for an indisposed Carlo Maria Giulini at the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Just five years later he became the orchestra’s youngest-ever principal conductor. Haitink’s lengthy stints with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and at Glyndebourne and Covent Garden made him a firm fixture in the UK’s musical life. A master of symphonic architecture, Haitink is perhaps best known for his Mahler and Bruckner, though he has won plaudits for much beyond.
Discover Haitink: Beethoven Symphonies Nos 4 & 8 | London Symphony Orchestra (LSO Live LSO087)
Greatest conductors of all time: the top 15
15. George Szell (1897-1970)
Famously dictatorial and autocratic, Hungarian émigré George Szell bullied, cajoled and coached the Cleveland Orchestra from post-war provincial obscurity to one of the world’s great virtuoso bodies. A formidable orchestral trainer with a clear, incisive stick technique and what some judged the best left hand in the business, Szell was also respected for his cultured musicality. Rare recordings with European orchestras show him at his most spontaneously expressive.
Discover Szell: Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 | Clifford Curzon )piano)/LSO (Decca 478 1386)
14. Ferenc Fricsay (1914-63)
Had he lived to become a ‘Grand Old Man’ among conductors, Hungarian-born Ferenc Fricsay, who died of cancer aged just 48, would surely be mentioned in the same breath as, say, Arturo Toscanini.
A superb orchestral trainer and musician of great integrity, Fricsay studied under Bartók. He was masterful in the music of his teacher, and also of Beethoven and Mozart. His Berlin Phil recording of Tchaikovsky’s Sixth is outstandingly blazing and dramatic.
Discover Fricsay: Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 | Berlin Philharmonic (Archipel ARPCD0200)
13. John Barbirolli (1899-1970)
‘Glorious John’, Vaughan Williams called him - merited mainly for Barbirolli's work with Manchester’s Hallé Orchestra, which he rebuilt from wartime decimation to international stature.
String phrasing of great warmth and expressivity was a particular hallmark, Barbirolli himself being originally a cellist. He always conducted ‘con amore’ ('with love'), not least in British music, which he championed indefatigably.
Discover Barbirolli: Elgar Symphony No. 2 | Hallé Orchestra (EMI 968 9242)
12. John Eliot Gardiner (b. 1943)
His star has fallen of late thanks to reported incidences of bullying. A major flaw, yet we should still salute John Eliot Gardiner. Any conductor who can persuade performers to join him on a year-long, 40,000-mile tour performing just one composer – as Gardiner did with his Bach Pilgrimage in 2000 – must have something.
Gardiner established himself as one of the leading pioneers of the period instrument movement, founding three ensembles in his drive towards presenting the music of the Baroque period in a new light.
Discover Gardiner: JS Bach Christmas and New Year Cantatas | Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra
11. Rafael Kubelik (1914-96)
Rafael Kubelik had a certain style - very lyrical and poetic, somehow steeped in humanity. His Mahler symphonies may not be the most tightly drilled of them all - what they are, though, is radiant with emotion and lyricism.
In that way, Kubelik as a conductor somewhat resembles Leonard Bernstein, another Mahler maestro. His Dvořák symphony cycle is also right up there among the finest.
Discover Kubelik: Mahler Symphony No. 1 'Titan' | Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Best conductor of all time: the top ten
10. Pierre Boulez (1925-2016)
Return to the pounding rhythms of the Cleveland Orchestra’s 1969 Stravinsky Rite of Spring recording, and you can hear why Boulez was renowned for combining intensity with pinpoint precision. As a conductor, Boulez explored and inspired in equal measures, teaching leading orchestras around the world about 20th-century music and building audiences for works by the Second Viennese School (Schoenberg, Berg, Webern) as well as Bartók, Stravinsky and Mahler.
Discover Boulez: Ravel Piano Concertos | Krystian Zimerman, Cleveland Orchestra (DG 449 2132)
9. Carlo Maria Giulini (1914-2005)
Carlo Maria Giulini brought refinement, depth, and quiet authority to the podium. A former violist, he rose after WWII, guided by Toscanini and de Sabata. Though disillusioned by opera audiences, he returned briefly for Falstaff. His collaborations with Callas, Visconti, and Zeffirelli reflected shared artistic ideals. Revered for his integrity and spiritual intensity, Giulini remains one of the most self-effacing yet profound conductors of the 20th century.
Discover Giulini: Bruckner Symphony No. 9 | Vienna Philharmonic (DG)
8. Arturo Toscanini (1867-1957)
Through his much vaunted attention to the composer’s score – which he considered sacrosanct – his single-mindedness in pursuing seriousness and high standards, his strength of personality, and not least his status as a US national figure as conductor of the NBC SO (1937-54), Toscanini became one of the musical legends of the 20th century.
A consistently hard worker, and fierce with musicians who gave less than 100 per cent, he rose to prominence in Italy with premieres of works by Puccini and his contemporaries (notably La bohème), as well as championing Wagner, Verdi and Debussy.
America beckoned, first in the case of the Metropolitan Opera (1908-15, where he initially shared conducting duties, uncomfortably, with Mahler), then at the New York Philharmonic (1928-36), and latterly (1937-54) with the NBC Symphony, formed especially for him and giving him a national platform.
His performances of Beethoven, Brahms and Debussy’s La mer were regularly considered definitive, while his view of the conductor’s role and responsibilities influenced a generation. For the way he helped to define the modern conductor, as much as his own feats in the field, Toscanini must be considered one of the greatest conductors of all time.
Discover Toscanini: Debussy La mer, Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune etc | NBC Symphony Orchestra (Guild Historical GHCD 2271-2)
7. Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886-1954)
Wilhelm Furtwängler conducted as if possessed, his movements shaped entirely by the music’s emotional and structural flow. A master of German Romantic repertoire, he combined intellectual depth with raw intensity. Though criticised for remaining in Nazi Germany, he believed great music could uplift a damaged society. Many have imitated his style, but few have matched his spiritual conviction or architectural command of orchestral form.
Discover Furtwängler: Wagner Tristan und Isolde | Kirsten Flagstad etc, Philharmonia (EMI)
6. Simon Rattle (b. 1955)
When Simon Rattle took over the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in 1980, it was decent; by his 1998 departure, it was world-class. A Mahlerian at heart, Rattle’s repertoire spans centuries, from Rameau to the avant-garde. He championed modern composers like Nicholas Maw and revived interest in Szymanowski and Grainger. Passionate about education, he remains committed to mentoring young musicians and conductors, with infectious energy and deep musical insight.
Discover Rattle: Mahler Symphony No. 2 | City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (EMI 345 7942)
Best conductor: the top five
5. Nikolaus Harnoncourt (1929-2016)
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, former Vienna Symphony cellist, defied categorisation—excelling in Baroque, Romantic, and even Gershwin. A pioneer of historically informed performance, he co-founded Concentus Musicus Wien and helped record all Bach's cantatas. Provocative and visionary, he rejected routine. His late interpretations, especially of Beethoven and Bruckner, prized clarity over warmth, revealing new textures. Admired for his integrity and curiosity, Harnoncourt reshaped how generations understand and perform classical music.
Sample Harnoncourt: Dvořák Symphony No. 7 / The Wild Dove | Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Warner 3984 25254-2)
4. Herbert von Karajan (1908-89)
Herbert von Karajan was the most recognisable conductor of the late 20th century, dominating classical music with technical brilliance and prestige. Though he embraced digital recording, his fiery 1950s Beethoven with the Philharmonia remains definitive. Later recordings, though polished, lack that spark. At his best, Karajan was unmatched—whether conducting Wagner, Bruckner, Strauss, or Sibelius—blending control with grandeur across opera and symphonic repertoire.
Discover Karajan
Sibelius Symphony No. 4 | Berlin Philharmonic (DG 457 7482)
Beethoven The Symphonies | Berlin Philharmonic (1963 recordings, DG 42732084)
3. Claudio Abbado (1933-2014)
Abbado combined elegance, insight, and humanity to reveal music’s deepest truths with effortless authority
Taciturn, placid, shy and private, Claudio Abbado was an unlikely Italian and an even less likely great conductor. He detested overt shows of power. He mumbled in rehearsal. And he never lost his rag. Taken as a boy in Milan to watch Toscanini rehearse, he remembered thinking how ‘horrible’ it was when the maestro screamed at the orchestra.
Yet this gentle, self-effacing man held the most important conducting positions in Europe. Early in his career he was made music director of Milan's great opera house La Scala, where he mixed scintillating Rossini with boldly revived rarities. Then came memorable stints at the helms of the LSO, Vienna State Opera and Berlin Philharmonic, in between which he founded two of the world’s finest youth orchestras.
Abbado’s interpretations of Mahler and Bruckner symphonies, or epic operatic explorations of spirituality such as Fidelio or Parsifal, now seem to reach far beyond the realms of music. They are journeys of the soul and affirmations of humanity. Abbado was a subtle and sophisticated conductor, but can also be counted as one of the most profound visionaries of our age.
Discover Abbado: Mahler Symphony No. 3 | Lucerne Festival Orchestra (Medici Arts DVD)
2. Leonard Bernstein (1918-90)
Bernstein fused charisma, brilliance, and passion, electrifying performances and redefining the conductor as cultural icon
Perhaps no one has possessed a more comprehensive collection of the traits conductors view as assets in their profession: Leonard Bernstein was almost impossibly musical, talented, versatile, creative, handsome, energetic, inquisitive, intelligent, charismatic and articulate.
Those who encountered him knew they were in the presence of a force of nature; love him or hate him, Lenny was difficult to ignore.
His celebrated last-minute debut with the New York Philharmonic (1943) ultimately resulted in a tenure there (1958-69) during which he championed the work of American and avant-garde composers, reached out to audiences through the televised Young People’s Concerts, and helped a troubled decade to find itself in the music of Gustav Mahler.
Before this stint his life involved composing (Candide, West Side Story), to which he later added mentoring young conductors and cultivating an international reputation (Vienna became a second home).
What was Leonard Bernstein like?
Bernstein’s strength was his emotional connection with the music he led; given his larger-than-life personality, his performances often contained exaggerations that perturbed critics, and one seldom came away from a Bernstein performance with the impression that he had polished the orchestral textures and sonorities to the extent that many of his colleagues considered desirable.
Instead, his was a flamboyant, sincere, persuasive style. Others might offer more scintillating detail and specifically musical insight, but Bernstein energised his listeners, prompting them to revel in the sheer joy of being alive.
Discover Bernstein: Shostakovich Symphonies Nos 1 & 7 | Chicago Symphony Orchestra (DG 477 7587)
Best conductor of all time: the greatest of them all
1. Carlos Kleiber (1930-2004)
To hear or, far better, to see (there are quite a few DVDs) Carlos Kleiber conducting is always an exciting, inspiring, moving experience. It makes you want to find out how many recordings of him there are.
And you immediately get a shock. In his 74 years, he conducted one Haydn symphony, two by Mozart, four by Beethoven, two by Schubert, one by Borodin, and two by Brahms. And he accompanied a concerto on only one occasion, performing Dvořák with pianist Sviatoslav Richter, fittingly one of the greatest pianists of all time. In the opera house, Kleiber conducted two operas by Richard Strauss, one by Weber, one by Wagner, one by Berg and three by Verdi.
What was Carlos Kleiber like ?
He swoops, sometimes stands motionless in a dandyish pose, even laughs, sometimes closes his eyes and listens in rapture. The tenor Plácido Domingo, who regards him as the most musical person he has ever met, says that when Kleiber was conducting an opera everyone was looking at the pit, not at the stage.
Yet he conducted just 96 concerts in his life, and about 400 operatic performances. He rehearsed so exhaustively that at the performance he could improvise, but with precise effect. That is his unique secret – the music really does seem as if it is being composed as it is played, and played immaculately.
The only trouble with such perfectionism is that there is the constant fear that you can’t keep it up, and Kleiber’s joy in music-making soon turned to continuous anxiety, so that he cancelled many concerts, and only gave one or two a year in the decade before his last one, in 1999.
Discover Carlos Kleiber
Brahms Symphony No. 4 | Vienna Philharmonic (DG 457 7062)
R Strauss Der Rosenkavalier (DVD) | Felicity Lott, Barbara Bonney et al; Vienna State Opera
This article first appeared in the April 2011 issue of BBC Music Magazine.