Influential Classical Music Publicist Mary Lou Falcone Ventures from Behind the Scenes to Raise Awareness of a New Cause

In Monday’s (10/23) New York Times, Alexis Soloski writes, “Mary Lou Falcone has lived most of her life away from the spotlight. ‘I made a conscious decision that I wanted to be behind the scenes,’ she said … Fifty years ago, after brief careers as a performer and a teacher, Falcone changed course and became a leading publicist in the world of classical music. She worked … with leading organizations and artists including the soprano Renée Fleming, the pianist Van Cliburn, the flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal and maestros including Gustavo Dudamel, Georg Solti and Jaap van Zweden … Now, for the first time since she was 28, Falcone has put herself center stage to promote a new, personal cause. In early 2019, her husband, the artist Nicholas Zann, was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia, a neurodegenerative disease. He died in 2020. To raise awareness of the disease and shed light on becoming a caregiver, she wrote ‘I Didn’t See It Coming: Scenes of Love, Loss and Lewy Body Dementia,’ a memoir of her life, their relationship, and Zann’s diagnosis and decline. Falcone … has now embarked on a publicity tour for the book, giving readings, talks, interviews. In many ways, she is doing what she has always done: crafting a narrative, then sharing it.”