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Leonard Slatkin is one of the world's leading conductors, noted for his performances of American, Russian, and British music, and Haydn symphonies. He was born to a famous musical family. His father was Felix Slatkin (1915-1963), a Saint Louis-born violinist who rose to become a film score and light music conductor, and founder of the Hollywood String Quartet. Leonard's mother was the excellent cello soloist Eleanor Aller, cellist of the quartet. Between them, they trained their boy in violin, viola, piano, and conducting. He attended Indiana University (1962) and Los Angeles City College (1963), and studied with Walter Susskind (music director of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra) at the Aspen Music School in 1964. He then attended Juilliard School in New York where he studied conducting with Jean Morel, graduating in 1968 with a B. Mus. Degree. In that same year he became assistant conductor of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra under Susskind, and was promoted to Associate Conduc...