by Seth Rogovoy There is an emerging consensus that life after the COVID-19 pandemic – if there ever will be such a thing – will not look exactly like life before the COVID-19 pandemic. Nor should it. And I’m not only referring to changes that will be made in direct response to the spreading…
by Seth Rogovoy There are two kinds of people during a pandemic: Those who read “The Plague” by Albert Camus, and those who don’t. I, like thousands if not millions of others, am in the first category. I’ve always been a fan of Camus, but I had never read “The Plague,” which, for those…
by Seth Rogovoy Throughout history, whenever there has been a plague, one of the casualties has always been a group of people defined as “the other” who get blamed for it. I don’t know of any case where a group of people has actually caused a plague or pandemic – other than when Europeans…
by Seth Rogovoy I wake up. Should I have tea or coffee? Can’t make up my mind. Should I have a shower first? Can’t make up my mind. Such are the existential dilemmas brought about by life in quarantine. I skip the shower and have tea. Should I take a walk or do yoga?…
by Seth Rogovoy World-renowned Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki – widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the last half-century — died on Sunday, March 29, at the age of 86. While you may have never heard of Penderecki, you almost definitely have heard his music, and probably more than once. Penderecki has…
by Seth Rogovoy (HUDSON, N.Y., March 26, 2020) — Concerts are cancelled. Movie theaters are closed. Performing arts venues are shuttered. What’s a culture vulture to do? While nothing beats live performance or seeing movies on a big screen, we’re all learning to make do with the new normal: staying at home and consuming…
by Seth Rogovoy As soon as I awaken these days, before I am even fully conscious, I take stock of how I am feeling. In that twilight state between sleep and wakefulness, I automatically take inventory: Do I feel feverish? No. Do I have flu-like aches, or that all-around crappy feeling of being attacked…
by Seth Rogovoy (HUDSON, N.Y., March 25, 2020) – Today was the day I had long feared and dreaded – when I would have to break down and walk into a pharmacy to get my prescription for … anxiety. Here’s a case where the cure exacerbated the symptoms. I’ve known for the last few…
by Seth Rogovoy Concerts are cancelled. Movie theaters are closed. Performing arts venues are shuttered. What’s a culture vulture to do? While nothing beats live performance or seeing movies on a big screen, we’re all learning to make do with the new normal: staying at home and consuming our culture via streaming on digital…
by Seth Rogovoy I’ve been working on a Spotify playlist I call “Soundtrack for the Apocalypse” over the last week or so. You can listen to it here. Please listen to it in shuffle mode. As you will hear, the criteria are for both music and lyrics to somehow address an emergency, if…
