A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Baton

by George Grove

BATON (Fr. Bâton), the stick with which the conductor of an orchestra beats the time. Hence the expression 'under Mr. ——'s baton,' i. e. under his direction. The first baton employed in England was probably the 'Taktirstäbchen' used by Spohr at the Philharmonic in 1820 (Selbstbiog. ii. 87). Batons are usually turned out of maplewood for lightness, 21 or 22 inches long, and tapering from 3-4ths to 3-8ths of an inch in diameter. They are occasionally given as 'testimonials,' in which case they are made of metal or of ivory ornamented with silver or gold.

When Berlioz and Mendelssohn met at Leipsic in 1841 they exchanged batons, and Berlioz accompanied his with the following letter, in the vein of Fenimore Cooper:—'Au chef Mendelssohn. Grand chef! nous nous sommes promis d'echanger nos tomahawcks; voici le mien! Il est grossier, le tien est simple; les squaws seules et les visages pales aiment les armes ornées. Sois mon frère! et quand le Grand Esprit nous aura envoyés chasser dans les pays des àmes, que nos guerriers suspendent nos tomawcks à la porte du conseil.' Mendelssohn's reply is not extant, but no doubt it was quite à propos.

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