An elderly Forumista writes ......

[cloughie]

You see, I ask myself all the time if, were it not for the inestimable edicative role Radio 3 performed for me during my formative years, I would have had the spadework preparation that gave me the wider picture to draw from in my lifelong investigation of musicm, and build my precious archive of recordings. And I worry about the cultural thinness of the gruel that now stands for "freedom of choice" in determining not just general public tastes and interests but the bedrock from which music has to move forward if it is not merely to stagnate.

Absolutely spot on - there is an incomplete spectrum displayed by the music mainstream daytime media from which choices can be made. Noisy pop music from the last forty years dominates everything else. Our generation has been truly musically blessed.

[Andy Freude]

Thanks S_A you are right in your assumption, I was agreeing with you Andy not attacking.

I didn't consider it an "attack", but was unnecessarily suspicious of the 'So' as being 'So, are you saying that we should just put up with all this rubbish … etc'

[Serial_Apologist]

I didn't consider it an "attack", but was unnecessarily suspicious of the 'So' as being 'So, are you saying that we should just put up with all this rubbish … etc'

The use of "so" when introducing something one wants to say, should be superfluous, in my view, unless the person using it means "therefore...".

[jayne lee wilson]

The use of "so" when introducing something one wants to say, should be superfluous, in my view, unless the person using it means "therefore...".

I think that use of "so" can soften the challenge of the direct question a little, keeping communication a little friendlier...

[Andy Freude]

I think that use of "so" can soften the challenge of the direct question a little, keeping communication a little friendlier...

'So' seems to have taken over from 'well' as a sentence starter with no particular meaning and is a marker of either a younger generation or oldies who consciously or unconsciously are quick to take up the neologisms of younger generations.

[LMcD]

Surely 'so' is just a not very subtle way of giving somebody a tad more time to refine - or come up with - an answer. It's replaced 'I'm glad you asked me that ....'

[cloughie]

Surely 'so' is just a not very subtle way of giving somebody a tad more time to refine - or come up with - an answer. It's replaced 'I'm glad you asked me that ....'

As in Lorenz Hart’s song title ‘It never entered my mind’, I didn’t realise that two letters could cause such a stir, maybe I should just have started as I sometimes do with replies ‘...’

[Alison]

'So' seems to have taken over from 'well' as a sentence starter with no particular meaning and is a marker of either a younger generation or oldies who consciously or unconsciously are quick to take up the neologisms of younger generations.

I’m sure Simon Rattle started the trend.

[cloughie]

I’m sure Simon Rattle started the trend.

What I really dislike is the written Sooooooo - surely that is either Sooty’s friend or taking legal action against someone!

[teamsaint]

I’m sure Simon Rattle started the trend.

So it seems it was that Chaucer.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_(sentence_opener)

[Padraig]

So it seems it was that Chaucer.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_(sentence_opener)

That could be where Seamus Heaney got the inspiration when translating Beowulf.(opening word)