Waking the Spirit: A Musician's Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul

"Earnest but affable memoir....He talks with neuroscientists and  psychiatrists and explores the legacy of Pythagoras, the ancient Greek  mathematician and philosopher who was among the first to recognize the  healing properties of music. Along the way, Schulman posits that the  relationship between the pain we feel and the songs and compositions we  love has its roots in a tender, transcendent form of symbiosis." —Meghan  Daum, The New York Times Book Review

From Macmillan:Picador: An  Oliver Sacks Foundation Best Book of the Year Selection, Finalist for  the Books for a Better Life "Best First Book” Award, and a People Magazine Pick in Nonfiction. It has been released by Pan Macmillan Australia in Australia and New Zealand, by Kitap Kurdu (Book Worm) in Turkey, and by Chinese Machine Press in China. 

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The astounding story of a critically ill musician who is saved by music and returns to the same hospital to help heal others, Andrew  Schulman, a fifty-seven-year-old professional guitarist, had a close  brush with death on the night of July 16, 2009. Against the odds—and  with the help of music—he survived: a medical miracle. 

Once fully  recovered, Andrew resolved to use his musical gifts to help critically  ill patients at Beth Israel Medical Center's ICU. In Waking the Spirit,  you’ll learn the astonishing stories of the people he’s met along the  way—both patients and doctors—and see the incredible role music can play  in a modern hospital setting. 

Schulman expertly weaves  cutting-edge research on neuroscience and medicine, as well as what he’s  learned as a professional musician, to explore the power of music to  heal the body and awaken the spirit. The story of developing the  Medical Musician specialty, which led to the founding of the Medical Musician Initiative, is told in Andrew Schulman's book, Waking The Spirit: A Musician's Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul.