Don't shirk making a stand like a conductor? (4,3,5)
I believe the answer is:
face the music
'a conductor?' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'don't shirk making a stand' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'a' is present in the answer.
'stand' could be 'music' (music stand is a kind of stand) and 'music' is found in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
'like' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for face the music that I've seen before include "Brave a difficult situation" , "Brave a hostile situation" , "Confront the consequences of one's actions" , "brave a trying situation" , "Confront unpleasant consequences" .)