This account of a year in the life of Simon Rattle, the most gifted young conductor of his generation, includes interviews with family, friends and colleagues (amongst others mentor John Carewe, composer Oliver Knussen) as well as with Rattle himself who speaks frankly about his aims for the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, describes his hopes for the future and looks back on his meteoric rise which has made him one of the most sought after conductors in the world. The author is a regular broadcaster and is a member of the Music Advisory Panel of the Arts Council of Great Britain.