Newtown, Conn (Top40 Charts/ Julie Lyonn Lieberman Official Website) You Are Your Instrument: The Definitive Musician's Guide by
Julie Lyonn Lieberman debuted in 1991 and immediately garnered critical praise from dozens of reviewers and famous musicians, selling out within weeks of the first printing. It was the first educational book published in the world to provide a comprehensive resource designed to protect musicians from injury and guide their healing process. "This unique guide," says Lieberman, "helps all musicians open up new avenues of expression through a pain-free, healthy, fluid approach to music-making."
The preface is by Dr. W. Donald Cooke, "Julie Lyonn Lieberman ... functions as our guide. She places strong emphasis on avoiding physical tension and creating the correct balance within the body as a whole. The chapters are designed for the musician of any level to come to an appreciation of what exactly is required for playing an instrument, how this can go awry, how to correct it, or who to see if you can't. The scope is comprehensive, and includes information from many different conventional and alternative disciplines."
After ten years of research and rejections from dozens of publishers that didn't believe musicians would possibly be interested in injury-preventive information, 15 musicians - as well as NYC's Local 802 Musician's Union - loaned Ms. Lieberman the money to publish and release the title in 1991. The book's instant international success proved the music publishing industry wrong and highlighted a lesson she'd learned from her grandmother, pianist Elizabeth Weiss, who'd been dragged off the steps of City Hall while protesting for the right to vote in 1920, "If you think something should change, don't wait for anyone else to change it. Do it yourself, no matter what it takes!"
The book's international success has generated countless presentations of Lieberman's "Playing Healthy" master class throughout the United States and beyond, for institutions like the Starling-Delay Symposium at Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, Eastman Conservatory, The Royal School of Music, American String Teachers Conference, and Music Educators National Conference, to name a few. In private session, she specializes in assisting performers in a process that she calls "technique rehabilitation." Lieberman highlights changes in technique, practice habits, exercise, diet, and the mental/emotional mind-set.
There are three spin-off DVDs, including two DVDs for string players, Violin and Viola Ergonomics and The Violin in Motion, as well as one DVD for singers titled Vocal Aerobics.
The eBook version retails for $14.00 and is available through iBook, Kindle, Google, Sony, and Barnes & Noble. The soft cover version sells for $20 and is distributed worldwide by Hal Leonard.
This is a useful resource for today's performing musicians, and a beneficial tool for teachers to utilize in assisting students to develop healthy habits. - American Music Teacher
This work is an invaluable vehicle for musicians who want to learn to use their bodies and minds more intelligently while practicing and performing. - Lukas Foss, composer and conductor
Every performing musician should carefully read this book. - Billy Taylor, jazz pianist and educator
Julie Lyonn Lieberman's book is a great service to growing musicians. - Paul Winter, The Paul Winter Consort
This is the first book I have seen that summarizes many of the lessons I learned (the hard way) from a lifetime of performing, but should have been taught before I started. - John Glaesel, Past President, American Federation of Musicians, Local 802
About Julie Lyonn Lieberman (https://www.julielyonn.com)
Julie Lyonn Lieberman is the author of eight music books, six instructional DVDs, two National Public Radio Series, the national eco-program, The Green Anthem (https://www.greenanthem.org), and over 50 music magazine articles. She is a co-author of American String Teachers Association's national curriculum book, the Artistic Director for the summer program, Strings Without Boundaries at Duquesne University, and a D'Addario Bowed Strings elite clinician.
