Author Archives: Scott Foglesong

Life has been busy lately. Well, no: I shouldn’t put that so casually. I have been playing whack-a-mole for weeks now, but so far I’m winning. And for the most part I’m having a good time, there with my mallet, … Continue reading →

In a recent article I alluded to my record collecting hobby. Some might call it an addiction. But they just don’t know a good time when they see one. In my enthusiasm/addiction/madness, I make it a point to read the … Continue reading →

Some years ago I made the courageous decision to come out of the closet as a bonafide audiophile. There: I’ve said it again. I love fine stereo equipment and the you-are-there sound of a fine system. I collect recordings promiscuously; … Continue reading →

In the Theravada Buddhist realm we have a wonderful practice called metta, the first of the four “Brahma Viharas,” or Abodes of Brahma, a poetic description for an enlightened mind. For the record, the other Brahma Viharas are karuna (compassion), … Continue reading →

You can take the boy out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of the boy. I still enjoy making classic Southern dishes for myself, even after all these decades in California and many years before that … Continue reading →

A recent article by Anthony Tommasini for the New York Times took on the impossible (and in some ways pointless) task of picking a “top ten” list of composers from the millennium-plus span of Western music. I noticed that he … Continue reading →

Joseph Haydn’s The Creation enjoys nowhere near the discographical abundance of Handel’s Messiah, but it is quite well represented on disc nonetheless. In the course of writing a program note on the work, I’ve been re-visiting some of my favorite … Continue reading →

It has been almost forty years since I went on a weekend trip to visit a friend who lived in a smallish city in southern Pennsylvania. Lovely folks, each and every one, and I was treated just like another member … Continue reading →

Just last night I considered just how vulnerable I am to impromptu tech glitches. I had completed my final pre-concert lecture at the SF Symphony on John Adams’ Harmonielehre, and I was sitting out in the audience enjoying the first … Continue reading →

“You get 150 people at new music concerts,” said my sage piano teacher Nathan Schwartz. “Unfortunately,” he added, “it’s always the same 150 people.” He didn’t tell me — but I soon discovered — that one of those people would … Continue reading →