Introduction
Each occupation has its unique physical and mental hazards.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of the U.S. government tracks the incidence of injuries related to such hazards and the resultant work time loss.  Although it is not monitored by OSHA, the occupation of professional musicians is no different in this respect.  It, too, has physical and mental health hazards that are related to the particular habits of musicians and stresses they encounter.  According to Sternbach in a 1985 survey of major orchestras, “76 percent of those responding reported enough pain to seriously affect their performance.  One study reference reported that professional musicians die 20-22 percent sooner than their counterparts in the general population, and that coronary heart disease accounts for almost 5 percent more deaths among musicians than in the general population.”  These injuries and disabilities affect both the ability of professional musicians to engage in their profession and the quality of their musical artistry.
            Each medium of performance has its particular professional hazards.  Singers, obviously, are prone to develop vocal nodules and other pathologies.  It has been reported in 1991 by Royster, J.D., Royster, L.H., and Killion that “violinists and violists showed significantly poorer thresholds at 3-6 kHz in the left ear than in the right ear, consistent with the left ear’s greater exposure from their instruments.”
 
The Modern Evolution of the Study
According to Harman (1993), the first treatise to list the occupational diseases of musicians was Bernardino Ramazzini’s Diseases of Tradesmen (1713).  The next major work was George Vivian Poore’s research into musician’s cramp, or “pianist’s breakdown,” published in 1887 in the British Medical Journal under the title, “Clinical Lecture on Certain Conditions of the Hand and Arm Which Interfere with the Performance of Professional Acts, Especially Piano-Playing.”  The next major contribution was the first book on the topic, Kurt Singer’s Diseases of the Musical Profession:  A Systematic Presentation of Their Causes, Symptoms and Methods of Treatment, published in 1932.
            Widespread interest in the problem of musicians’ ailments and their solutions, did not, however, surface until the 1960s and 70s, when the Voice Foundation sponsored its first annual Care of the Professional Voice Symposium.  In Central Europe, Professors Géza Kovács and Zsuzsa Pásztor developed a program of mental and physical fitness for musicians “The Care of Musicians’ Work Capacity”.  Combining both efforts, the Danube Symposium of Neurology, emphasizing the neurology of music, was held in 1972 in Vienna.  As a result of this conference, a major book entitled Music and the Brain:  Studies in the Neurology of Music, by MacDonald Critchley and R.A. Henson was published in 1977.  This book did not have the focus on music medicine of Singer’s 1932 book, but did include information on the occupational diseases of musicians. 
            Interest in the topic continued to grow.  A major stimulus occurred in 1981, when the New York Times published an article in which pianists Gary Graffman and Leon Fleisher publicly discussed their career-ending hand problems.  The Journal of the American Medical Association reported on this news item in 1983, making an important contribution to the field of music medicine.  Also important for the advancement of the field are the annual Medical Problems of Musicians Symposia, which have been held in Aspen, Colorado since 1983, the Biology of Music Making, the International Society for the Study of Tension in Performance and the Playing Less Hurt conferences, and symposia such as the International Center for Dance Orthopedics and Dance Therapy.  These professional gatherings routinely publish papers presented during the proceedings.  The center of this activity has been the United States, but smaller centers have also existed in Australia and Hungary.  In Australia, the most important contribution has come from surgeon Hunter Fry, who has developed a system for evaluating overuse, presented in the Lancet in 1986 in an article entitled, “Overuse Syndrome in Musicians:  Prevention and Management.”  In Hungary, Professors Kovács and Pásztor have continued to develop their program of mental and physical health maintenance for musicians.  As is seen in the increasing number of their published research articles, their growing number of lectures in continuing education programs, and the expansion of their physical wellness program.
            Since the 1980s, according to Harman, interest has exploded on this issue, with serious contributions having been made largely in diagnosis and treatment, but also in prevention of mental and physical problems.  Many performing arts medicine clinics have been set up in large cities.  These include the Medical Program for Performing Artists at the Rehabilitation Institute in Chicago, Illinois, the Medical Program for Performing Artists Clinic at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Evanston, Illinois, Performing Artists Clinic at University of Texas Medical School, and Hermann Hospital, Houston, Texas, and the Performing Arts Medicine Clinic at Indiana University Medical Center in Indianapolis, Indiana.  In addition, pertinent organizations have been founded, such as the International Arts-Medicine Association (IAMA), the Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA), the Association of Medical Advisors to British Orchestras, MedArt, Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers (HEAR), and the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science.  Existing organizations such as the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and the National Flute Association have founded committees on the subject.  Significantly, a journal, Medical Problems of Performing Artists (MPPA) began publication in 1986 with Alice Brandfonbrener, M.D. as editor.  In addition to articles detailing health problems and treatments, this journal has published proceedings from the Aspen symposia.  MPPA has also conducted a survey of the incidence of various health problems in 48 different orchestras.  Other journals in which the issue of performing arts medicine is addressed occasionally are the Journal of Voice (which began in 1987), Kinesiology and Medicine for Dance and the new International Journal of Arts-Medicine. Lockwood’s review of the field published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1989 brought arts medicine to the attention of medical doctors.  Finally, the first modern comprehensive textbook on this topic, the Textbook of Performing Arts Medicine, was published in 1990. 
            Since 1990, performing arts medicine has evolved into a recognized discipline.  According to Fry (1993), research to date has focused on the identification and treatment of injuries, but that same year Harman reported the emphasis was currently shifting in the direction of prevention.  Norris (1993), Sternbach (1994), and Fry (1993) focus their research primarily on physical problems while others such as Sternbach (1993) have investigated mental problems.  However, most articles - such as those by Rozmaryn, Lockwood, Middlestadt and Fishbein - combine physical and cognitive problems.  In these studies, the first step in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of the mental, emotional, and physical injuries that may result from musical performance has been identifying their incidence and type. 
 
Literature Review
Early studies pertaining to the literature of performing arts occupational injuries focused on the identification and treatment of specific physical and mental problems among musicians without addressing the incidence of these problems.  Yet the description of these problems served as a prerequisite to a study of the incidence of problems among musicians.  The first articles studying incidence appeared in 1981 when Piperek’s “Psychological Stress and Strain Factors in the Work of a Symphony Orchestra Musician:  Contributing to a Job Profile for Orchestra Musicians” and Haider and Groll-Knapp’s “Psychophysiological Investigations into the Stress Experienced by Musicians in a Symphony Orchestra,” were both included in the book Stress and Music.  These articles, based on studies of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, and were attempts to look at the types and the frequency of musicians’ occupational hazards.  Piperek identified the job aspects contributing to stress, and Haider and Groll-Knapp reported the effects of performing on musicians’ physical health.  A more recent article specifically oriented to the incidence of problems is Manchester’s “The Incidence of Hand Problems in Music Students,” which appeared in 1988 in the MPPA.  Manchester reported the number of hand problems identified among 246 university music students, and categorized them by types of problem, student age and gender.
            In 1988 the first large-scale statistical report of the incidence of physical and mental problems among musicians appeared.  Fishbein, Middlestadt, Ottati et al. published “Medical Problems Among ICSOM Musicians:  Overview of a National Survey” in MPPA, and Middlestadt and Fishbein published “Health and Occupational Correlates of Perceived Occupational Stress in Symphony Orchestra Musicians” in the Journal of Occupational Medicine.  This later study, sponsored by the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians (ICSOM), is based on a survey of 4,025 symphony musicians, with 2,212 responding (55 percent), constituting a representative sample of 47 major orchestras in the United States.  The focus was on two issues: the relationship between perceived occupational stress and reported mental and physical health, and the occupational factors viewed as stressful by musicians.  Middlestadt and Fishbein concluded that, in general, there is a strong correlation between job stress and the incidence of mental and physical problems among symphony musicians.
            In 1998 Cayea and Manchester reported on the instrument-specific injury rates of students at a university-level music school.  The information was calculated from data collected over 14 academic years, 1982-83 through 1995-96.  During this period, 513 performance majors went to that university’s health service with performance-related upper-extremety injuries.  The instruments were divided into low, medium, and high-rate tertiles based on their associated injury rates.
 
The Need for More Research
Musicians have always led a demanding life, but these demands have intensified and broadened in our technology-based society.  The traditional lifestyle of a musician is intensified by the speed at which our life is currently changing.  Not only must musicians perform at the professional level, they must also contend with the realities of our mobile society.  In addition to mastering many disciplines of study (music, music theory, music history etc.), musicians must contend with thechnologies such as fax machines and computers in self-management on a daily basis.  Musicians are constantly involved with the more mundane aspects of life as they travel from place to place.  As discussed by Fetter in “Life In The Orchestra” (1993), “The concert soloist and conductor are prominent figures within the orchestra.  Their roles make extraordinary demands on them -- demands that must often be fulfilled while dealing with the problems of travel.”  For example, they are expected to be vigorous and friendly with managers, staff, and audiences at all times.  More and more of these responsibilities are falling on the ordinary musician.  Travel that is essential to today’s musicians takes a toll on fingers and backs that become tired from sitting on planes and carrying luggage and heavy instruments.  It is essential for musicians to be able to economize on the use of their muscles, relax in difficult circumstances and achieve the most from their practice time.  The need to study the mental and physical demands on musicians is now greater than ever before.
            The field of athletics provides a good example of an area in which the mental and physical needs have been studied and addressed.  Alternative training techniques are widely recognized in the sports profession.  Cross-training and training that emphasizes the mind-body link help athletes to prevent injury and excel in their chosen sports as described by Harmon in an article in 1998.   Rhodes, in an article written in 1995, discusses complementary exercises in which five mind-body workouts are associated with five specific sports, thus producing five new ways of thinking about training.  These are: 1) Yoga for runners, which “increases flexibility, an important safeguard against leg injuries, and can help you strengthen muscles (such as those in the upper body) that don’t get much of a workout when you’re running.”  2) Alexander Technique for swimmers, which “emphasizes the importance of unfolding and lengthening the torso, something swimmers need to emphasize as well.”   3) Pilates Technique for skiers, which “technique improves posture and muscular balance, both of which affect the side-to-side moves used in skiing and skating.”  4) Tai Chi, which is used by hikers, because “leg strength and footwork are hallmarks of tai chi.”  5) Feldenkrais Method for cyclists, because “one aim of the Feldenkrais method is to teach you how to let your skeleton bear some of the weight of your body instead of invariably relying on your muscles, which get overworked as a result... This ability is particularly important to cyclists.”
            In contrast to the high degree of development and interest in the area of sports training, surprisingly little has been done to care for musicians’ physical, mental, and spiritual needs.  In 1997 Brandfonbrener summarizes her research with the Medical Program for Performing Artists Clinic, where musicians in nine major orchestras added daily warm-up exercises away from the instrument.  However, the musicians did not comply with the daily physical exercise program, citing lack of time, not being paid for exercise time, and the belief that they did not need the exercises.  This lack of compliance occurred despite the accompanying educational sessions in which musicians learned how exercises help prevent injuries.  Brandfonbrener concluded that education must start much earlier, that is, before musicians are set in their routine and before injuries can begin to develop.  There are a number of broadly applicable mind-body and alternative healing therapy techniques that musicians have adopted such as those derived from ancient Asian culture: Yoga, Acupressure, Acupuncture, Massage, Reiki, Seitai, Tai Chi. Others have turned to techniques developed in modern Western culture, such as Feldenkrais Method, Hellerwork, Neuromuscular Integrative Action, Rolfing, and Alexander Technique, to mention a few.  Even though it was not developed specifically for instrumentalists and does not address their special needs, the Alexander Technique, is offered to musicians at a number of music schools and conservatories including the Royal Academy in London. 
            In The Netherlands, Samama developed a physical therapy program specifically for musicians, which addresses posture, breathing technique, and muscle relaxation exercises for certain instruments.  What is needed now is a therapy program of a broader scope for musicians, which would take into consideration for example preventive methods, stress reduction, therapeutic strengthening exercises, and the well-being of musicians as a mind-body balanced unit.  The physical fitness program, “The Care of Musicians’ Work Capacity,” developed by Professors Kovács and Pásztor and taught in Budapest, Hungary takes such a wholistic approach.  Because its success has been well documented it is unfortunate that few outside Hungary know of it and that its wisdom has not been the basis for programs worldwide.  Generally speaking, therapy programs for musicians, whatever the technique, are few in number.              
 
Bibliography
Alcantara, P. (1997). Indirect Procedures: A Musician’s Guide to the Alexander Technique. Oxford University Press.
 
Appelboom, T. and Van Eigem, A. (1990). How Ancient Is Temporal Arteritis? Journal of Rheumatology, 17 (7), 929-931.
 
Balderston, S. (1980). On Teaching the Harp: A Pedagogy Text for Individual or Class Use. USA: Salvi Publications.
 
Balderston, S. (1988). How the Body Works. USA
 
Bayer, L. J. (1982). The Stress Process in Professional Musicians:  An Exploratory Study. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Cincinnati.
 
Bishop, D. (1991). The Musician as Athlete: Alternative Approaches to Healthy Performance. Calgary, Canada: Kava Publications.
 
Blatt, R. (1990). Preventing Overuse Injuries in Oboists. The Double Reed, 13 (2), 64-65.
 
Blum, J. and Ritter, G. (1990). Violinists with Masses under the Left Side Angle of the Jaw Known as‘Fiddlers’ Neck. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 5 (4), 155-160.
 
Brandfonbrener, A. G. (1986). An Overview of the Medical Problems of Musicians. Journal of American College Health, 34 (2), 165-169.
 
________. (1991). Performing Arts Medicine: An Evolving Specialty. Music Educators’ Journal, 77 (1), 37-41.
 
________. (1997). The Orchestral Injury Prevention Intervention Study.  Medical Problems of Performing Artists 12:1 (3), 9-14
 
________. (1997). The Science Versus the Art of Medicine in Considering Musicians’ Injuries. American String Teacher 47:2 (Spring), 33-36.
 
Caryl J. S. (1998). Harp Aches. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 13 (3), 35-39.
 
Cayea, D. and Manchester, R. A. (1998). Instrument-specific Rates of Upper-extremety Injuries in Music Students. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 13 (3), 19-25.
 
Chong, J., Lynden, M., Harvey, D., and Peebles, M. (1989). Occupational-Health Problems of  Musicians. Canadian Family Physician, 35 (11), 2341-2348.
 
Coniglio, D.M. and Newell, K. A. (1992). Testing for Ulnar Nerve Palsy: Overuse Injuries and OtherSyndromes Affecting Musicians. Physician’s Assistant, 16 (4), 16.
 
Critchley, MacDonald and Henson, R. A. (1977).  Music and the Brain: Studies in the Neurology of Music. London: Heinemann.
 
Dawson, D.M. (1993). Entrapment Neuropathies of the Upper Extremities. The New England Journal of Medicine, 329 (12), 2013-2018.
 
Dunning, J. (1981). When a pianist’s fingers fail to obey. New York Times, (June 14)
 
Eaton, R. (1992 ). Entrapment Syndromes in Musicians. Journal of Hand Therapy, 5 (3), 92-93.
 
Fetter, D. (1993 ). Life In The Orchestra. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 289-292. 
 
Fishbein, M., Middlestadt, S., Ottai, V., Straus, S., and Ellis, A. (1988). Medical Problems Among ICSOM Musicians: Overview of a National Survey. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 3 (3), 1-8.
 
Fry, H. J. H. (1986). Overuse Syndrome in Musicians. Lancet, 2 (2), 728-731.
 
________. (1987). Overuse Syndrome in Clarinetists. The Clarinet, 14 (8), 48-51.
 
________. (1993 ). The Treatment of Overuse Injury Syndrome. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 277-282.
 
Fry, H. J. H. and Rowley, G. (1992). Instrumental Musicians Showing Technique Impairment with Painful Overuse. Maryland Medical Journal, 41 (11), 899-903.
 
Gaál, E. (1997).  Physical Fitness Program for Musicians.  Harpa-Piano, 1 (Spring), 48-49.
 
Gaál, E. (1997/1998).  The Care of Musicians’ Work Capacity.  Harpa-Piano, 3 (Winter), 22.
 
Gillespie, R. (1992).  Don’t Miss It! Kató Havas Is Now at the ASTA Media Resource Center.  American String Teacher, 42 (Autumn), 31.
 
Gorman, E. S. and Warfield, C. A. (1987).  Pain Syndromes in Musicians. Hospital Practice, 22 (2), 68-71.
 
Goodgame, D. (2000).  The Game of Risk.  Time, 156, (7), 57-61.
 
Haider M., Groll-Knapp E. (1981). Psychophysiological investigations into the stress experienced by musicians in a symphony orchestra.  In Piperek M. (Coord):  Stress and Music.  Universitäts-Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH:  Wilhelm Braumuller, 15-34.
 
Harman, S. E. (1993). Odyssey: The History of Performing Arts Medicine. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 251-253.
 
Harmon, J..  (1998).  Body of Knowledge.  Swimmer, (4, 5), 24-25.
 
Harris, P. (1988). Visual Conditions of Symphony Musicians. Journal of the American Optometric Association, 59 (12), 952-959.
 
Kovács, G. (1965). Zenemüvész növendékek és müvészek munkaképességéröl. [On student musicians’ and musicians’ capabilities]. Parlando, 7 (1, 2), 23-35, 13-18.
 
________. (1976). A zenei munkaképesség fejlesztése és gondozása. [The development and care of  musical capacity to work]. Parlando, 18 (3, 4, 6), ?-?, 6-12, 14-17.
 
Kovács, G. and Pásztor, Zs. (1980). Munka- és munkásvédelem a zenei szakmában [Work and workers’ protection among musicians]. Budapest: XX. ker. Tanács.
 
________. (1980). Zeneórai munkaképességgondozás zeneiskolákban és zenemüvészeti szakközépiskolákban. [Care of ability to work during music lessons in music schools and musical high schools]. Budapest: XX. ker. Tanács.
 
________. (1983). Zeneórai munkaképességgondozás zeneiskolákban. [Care of ability to work during music lessons in music schools]. Népszava, 7 (5).
 
________. (1985). A zeneoktatás problémáinak természetes okai a szervezet automatizmusában. [The  natural causes of physicial difficulties in music instruction]. Budapest: Fövárosi Pedagógiai Intézet.
 
________. (1985). A muzsikáló kéz. [The musical hand]. Budapest: Fövárosi Pedagógiai Intézet.
 
________. (1987). A zene érzékelésének szervezeti rendje: Hallásgondozás a zeneiskolában. [Music perception’s physical structure: care of hearing in the music school]. Budapest: Fövárosi  Pedagógiai Intézet.
 
________. (1990). Az idegrendszer zenei foglalkozási ártalmai. [The harmful            effects of the musical profession on the musculatory system]. Budapest: Fövárosi Pedagógiai Intézet.
 
Lassú, T. (1997). The Care of Human Work Capacity. Privately Produced             Documentary Video Program. Budapest.
 
Leijnse, J. N., Snijders, C. J., Bonte, J.E., Landsmeer, J. M.,  and Kalker, J. J. (1993). The Hand of the Musician: The Kinematics of the Bidigital Finger System with Anatomical Restrictions. Journal of Biomechanics, 26 (11), 1169-1179.
 
Lederman, R. (1991). An Overview of Performing Arts Medicine. American Music Teacher, 40 (2-3), 12-71.
 
Lieberman, J. L. (1995). You Are Your Instrument. New York, NY: Huiksi Music.
 
Lockwood, M.D., and Alan, H. (1989). Medical Problems in Musicians. The New England Journal of Medicine, 320 (1): 221-227.
 
Manchester, R.A. (1988). The Incidence of Hand Problems in Music Students. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 3 (Spring), 15-18.
 
Meharg, S. S. (1988). Help for the Anxious Performer. Music Educators’ Journal, 75 (11): 34-37.
 
Middlestadt, S. E. and Fishbein, M. (1988). Health and Occupational Correlates of Perceived Occupational Stress in Symphony Orchestra Musicians. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 30 (9): 687-692.
 
Norris, R. (1990). Design for a Right Thumb Rest for the Flute Based on Physical Analysis. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 5 (4), 161-162.
 
________. (1993). Applied Ergonomics: Adaptive Equipment and Instrument Modification for Musicians. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 271-275.
 
________. (1993). The Musician’s Survival Manual: A Guide to Preventing and Treating Injuries in Instrumentalists. Edited by Deborah Torch. San Antonio, TX: International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians, Crumrine Printers.
 
Ostwald, P. F., Baron, B. C., Byl, N. M., Wilson, F. R. (1994). Performing Arts       Medicine.  West Journal Medicine, 160 (1), 73-74.
 
Pásztor, Zs. (1973). Az alsófokú hangszeres oktatás hatékonyságának fejlesztéséröl. [On the development of the effectiveness of elementary instrumental instruction]. Parlando, 15 (4, 5), 8-12, 21-28.
 
________. (1979). Zenei munkaképességgondozás kisérlete a Fövárosi XX. ker. zeneiskolában. [An experiment regarding the care of musicians’ ability to work at the Capital state music school in the twentieth district]. Parlando, 21 (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12), 13-15, 22-25, 16-20, 21-23, 7-14, 48-53, 20-23, 23-27, 21-23.
 
 ________. (1989, 1990). Hangszeres mozgások elökészítése a zongoratanításban. [Preparation for Physical Movements in Piano Teaching]. Parlando, 31, 32 (6, 7, 8, 12, and 1), ?-?. 
 
Piperek, M. (1981). Stress and Music: Medical, Psychological, Sociological, and Legal Strain Factors in a Symphony Orchestra Musician’s Profession. Vienna: Wilhelm Braumüller.
 
Poore, G. V. (1887). Clinical Lecture on Certain Conditions of the Hand and Arm Which Interfere with the Performance of Professional Acts, Especially Piano-Playing. British Medical Journal, 1 (1), 441-444.
 
Potter, P. J., Jones, I.C. (1995). Medical Problems Affecting Musicians. Canadian Family Physician, 41 (12), 2121-2128.
 
Ramazzini, B. (1964). Diseases of Workers. Translated by W.C. Wright. New York: Hafner.
 
Rhodes, M. (1995). Complementary exercise:  five mind-body workouts, five sports, five new ways of thinking about training.  Women’s Sports and Fitness, (1-2), 45-46.
 
Robinson, S.N. (1993). Orthodontic Treatment and the Wind Instrument. Dental Update, 20 (4), 118-120.
 
Roskell, P. (1998). Yoga for Pianists. Piano & Keyboard. (5-6), 44-46.
 
Royster, J.D., Royster, L.H., and Killion, M.C. (1991). Sound exposures and hearing thresholds of symphony orchestra musicians. Journal of Acoustical Soc. Am., 89 (6), 2793-2803.
 
Rozmaryn, M.D., Leo, M. (1993). Upper Extremity Disorders in Performing Artists. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 255-260.
 
Samama, A. (1981). Muscle Control for Musicians:  A Series of Exercises for Daily Practice. Utrecht: Bohn, Scheltema and Holkema.
 
Sataloff, R. T., Brandfonbrener, A. G., and Lederman, R. J. (1991) eds. Textbook of Performing Arts Medicine. New York: Raven Press.
 
Schonberg, H. C. (1983). Musicians’ Disabilities Provoke Medical Study. New York Times, 27 (8).
 
Singer, K. (1932). Diseases of the Musical Profession: A Systematic Presentation of their Causes, Symptoms and Methods of Treatment. Translated by W. Lakond. New York: Greenberg.
 
Sternbach, D. (1993). Addressing Stress-Related Illness in Professional Musicians. Maryland Medical Journal, 42 (3), 283-288.
 
____________. (1994). Chronic Muscle Pain Syndrome. International Musician, ? (4), 8-9.
 
Tompa, Réthelyi, Kovács, G., and Pásztor, Zs. (1985).  A müvészetoktatás hatékonyságának emberi feltételei. [The requirements of effective music instruction]. Budapest: Müvelödéskutató Intézet.
 
Tubiana, R. and Chamagne, P. (1993). Les affections professionelles du membre superieur chez les musiciens. [Occupational arm ailments in musicians]. Bulletin de l’Academie Nationelle de Medicine, 177 (2), 203-212.
Uszler, M., and Page, T. (1998.)  A Fleisher Fête.  Piano & Keyboard, 195 (6),
            28-38.
 
Weigl, K. and Weigl, D. (1992). Body Injuries in Musicians. Harefuah, 123 (8), 147-150.
 
World Harp Congress. (19830. Lectures and Discussions of the Symposium: Medical and Sociological Aids to Performing Musicians. Maastricht.
 
Wristen, B. (1996). Fitness and Form To Reduce Injuries. Clavíer, 35 (7-8), 26-28.
 
 
Erzsébet Gaál is a Hungarian harpist and a Kodály pedagogue with professional interest in a program of physical wellness for musicians.  She has given concerts all across Europe and America.  She was the first Hungarian harpist to represent her native country by a performance of Hungarian solo harp music program at the Fifth World Harp Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark.  Erzsébet Gaál has commissioned and premiered a number of harp compositions some of which can be heard on her solo harp CD recording Harpa Hungarica.  Dr. Gaál has received numerous invitations to share her expertise in the fields of physical wellness for musicians and the Kodály Concept for harp, including: the Fourth European Harp Symposium in Perugia, Italy, the Third American Harp Society Summer Institute in Los Angeles, California, the Fourth Latin-American Harp Conference in Mexico City and the 8th World Harp Congress in Geneva, Switzerland.  Her articles appeared in the World Harp Congress Review, Harpa, Harpa-Piano, American Harp Journal and in the AHS Teachers Forum.  Erzsébet Gaál is an honor graduate of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest, Hungary, holding a Doctor of Music degree from Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.
 
Edited by Professor Eva Legêne
School of Music, Indiana University.
 
Copyright © 2001, ARTA The Recorder Education Journal
Printed originally in the No 7 issue.
Used by permission.