Don Hermanns

Bass

At this moment …

We would find Don just getting in from walking his dog, a border collie lab mix named Molly. "It's a good opportunity for me to organize my thoughts and plan my day." Don's day includes taking care of his kids and his parents, managing his publishing business, exercising, managing type I diabetes and practicing.

On the CD player …

Don likes to "mix it up." Currently he's enjoying "Lyle Lovett and His Large Band," his wife's recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations ("it happens to be my favorite recording of that work") and his son's Suzuki violin CD.

In the kitchen …

"We eat lots of vegetarian dishes because one of my children is a vegetarian," says Don. His specialty is a variation on an Italian pasta dish with olive oil, crushed red peppers and garlic, sautéed and topped with tomatoes and parmesan cheese.

On the music stand …

Don is practicing for an upcoming noontime concert at OHSU with Symphony cellist Tim Scott. "I'm going to play Bach's first cello suite on bass guitar, to show that Bach's music is played by a wide spectrum of instruments."

And on the nightstand …

Eat, Drink and Be Healthy by Walter Willett, M.D. "It has lots of research data included and great information about different foods. I'd recommend it to everyone." Don is also reading The Forgetting: Alzheimer's: Portrait of an Epidemic by David Shenk and A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn. "It's very thought-provoking and requires time to absorb."

Before you left …

Don's property includes one of the sources of the headwaters of Tryon Creek, where his is doing some wetlands restoration. Don would also show you some of his portraits and landscape photography, including pictures of Lake Tahoe. He would also introduce you to his wife, pianist Susan D. Smith, and his boys Alan, 10, and Scott, 5.