the motion given by early conductors to guide an instrumental ensemble was called
Conducting An early form of conducting is cheironomy, the use of hand gestures to indicate melodic shape. This has been practiced at least as far back as the Middle Ages. In the Christian church, the person giving these symbols held a staff to signify his role, and it seems that as music became rhythmically more complex, the staff was moved up and down to indicate the beat, acting as an early form of baton.
Ragtime Ragtime – also spelled rag-time or rag time[1] – is a musical style that enjoyed its peak popularity between 1895 and 1918.[2] Its cardinal trait is its syncopated, or "ragged", rhythm.[2]