DECEMBER 2017 | SARASOTA SCENE 105
on the town
training young doctors for years. We’ve
trained 44 physicians in ear surgery, and
I’ve developed a lot of techniques that are
used now. I taught young doctors how to
do it and they go around the country and
spread the word and keep expanding the
knowledge.
What are you most proud of out all your
accomplishments?
Vestibular Neurectomy was my biggest
development. Being able to cut the
balance nerve in Meneire’s disease and
save the hearing and doing it through the
ear. Neurosurgeons had done it through
the skull, which was a big operation. I
developed an operation that goes through
the ear.
Does your love of music as a jazz pianist
help bridge the gap in terms of empathy
with your patients?
It’s an amazing thing to be able to hear
and create. I empathize with people who
can’t hear. But today nobody has to be
deaf. Compared to ophthalmology—you
can’t make a blind person see—but
you can make a deaf person hear with
cochlear implants. So, we are now ahead
of them in the research. It’s a wonderful
thing to be able help people with their
hearing so they can hear the music. I give
them my music when I’m going to operate
on them. It’s a kick. It’s a thrill.
How much do you love music?
The passion starts when you’re a kid. My
parents always played classical music—
Bach, Beethoven and all that stuff when
I was growing up. And I played it when
I was a little kid. My mom played the
piano and my father loved music, so I
think it runs in the genes. You grow up
hearing music. I fell in love with jazz in
the 1950s, but my parents wouldn’t let
me play jazz because they called it noise.
My father took me to the jazz joints when
I was 16 in Philly, but I didn’t start playing
jazz until I was 48.
Is your daily routine as a doctor in surgery
ever routine to you?
No. It’s never routine. And jazz improvisation
is very similar to surgery. There are
many aspects that are very similar. First
The Misantone family,
from left: Stella, Barbara,
Dasher (dog), Brooke
(standing), Francis
& Alexandra
THE BULLET HOLE
“Florida’s Oldest Gun Store”
Located in the heart of Downtown Sarasota since 1947.
Specializes in Firearms, Liberty Safes & Accessories.
Merry Christmas &
Happy Holidays from
our family to yours
941-957-1996 | 330 South Orange Avenue
Don’t worry, we have plenty of parking!
A
Christmas
Carol
ALSO PLAYING IN DECEMBER
A Christmas Story, the Musical
The Santaland Diaries
The Ultimate Tribute to the King starring Dwight Icenhower
The Sounds of Christmas w. the Ditchfield Family Singers
The American Swing Experience
TICKETS & INFO: 941.488.1115 | VeniceStage.com
/VeniceStage.com