My Lessons With Kumi: How I Learned to Perform With Confidence in Life and Work [Paperback]

Michael Colgrass (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2000

Psychological principles and skills applied to performance and presentation, taught through fictional narrative and lessons/exercises. Michael Colgrass combines neuro-linguistic programming, mime, creativity, hypnosis, psychology and Grotowski physical training in this engaging teaching tale. Nick's encounters with his teacher, Kumi, become one of the most comprehensive self-development chronicles ever written.

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

My Lessons With Kumi is a novel based on ideas IÕve gathered from experts in many fields over a period of three decades. Special credit goes to John Grinder and Richard Bandler, the original co-creators of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), whose ideas are woven into this teaching tale. I have learned much from NLP developers Steve and Connirae Andreas, Leslie Cameron, Judith DeLozier, Robert Dilts, David Gordon, Michael Grinder and Steve Lankton. The ground-breaking work of family therapist Virginia Satir and hypnotherapist Milton H. Erickson also inspired me. Affectionate thanks to Toronto psychiatrist Raymond D. Leibl, M.D., in whose study group I first experimented with many of the ideas that led to this book. Also to Paul Madaule, director of The Listening Centre in Toronto, for his speech therapy techniques. My worldwide theater studies have shaped much of My Lessons With Kumi. I want to thank Stanislaw Brozowski of the Polish Mime Theater, and Richard Cieslak and Jerzy Grotowski of the Polish Theater Laboratory for their techniques in physical training. To actor/teacher Bill Hickey and voice teacher Eugene Brice of the H-B Studio in New York I owe my acting and vocal training. Thanks also to the actors of New YorkÕs Open Theater for teaching me the laughing excercise. My sources for natural healing through nutrition are numerous, including Adele Davis, Lavon J. Dunne, Julian Whitaker, M.D., and James and Phyllis Balch. From my wife, Ulla, I learned how to translate their nutritional knowledge into delicious meals. Many professionals and friends read my manuscript and gave valuable suggestions or technical information: computer specialist Alan Hahn; violinist and student of psychotherapy Janie Kim; actor/theater manager Jens Kohler; composer and teacher David Maslanka; computer software manager Bruce Anderson; graphologist Gloria Lokay; occupational therapist Roula Makhlouta; neurosurgeon Samuel Brendler, M.D,; performer/teacher/educator Kenneth Radnofsky and book producer/literary agent, Sandra J. Taylor. Special thanks to editor Steve Andreas for his incisive edits and suggestions, and for understanding what this book is about.I enjoy the mixed blessing of living in a family of professional editors. I am grateful to my wife, Ulla, whose ruthless red pen made this book more readable, and to the laser-eyed scrutiny of my screenwriter son, Neal, whose suggestions added life to My Lessons With Kumi. Most of all, my appreciation for UllaÕs patience in sharing her life with this book for eight years.

From the Back Cover

Michael Colgrass combines neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), mime, creativity, hypnosis, psychology and Grotowski physical training in this intriguing teaching tale. In this adventure, Nick, a disillusioned New Yorker, has lost his job, his marriage and his confidence. High in the Montana mountains he finds a mentor, named Kumi.In the dance between KumiÕs cajoling and humor, Nick undergoes a rigorous training of mind, body and spirit that transforms his personal and professional life. NickÕs notes on his growth and progress serve as a step-by-step handbook for the reader. This book is for entrepreneurs, performers and readers in search of a gripping spiritual and intellectual adventure that enlightens as it entertains.

AUTHOR BIO:Michael Colgrass is a composer, writer and lecturer, who gives personal development workshops all over the world for performers, students and professional groups. A graduate of the University of Illinois, he is a Tanglewood scholar, twice Guggenheim Fellow, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Music. He won an Emmy for the PBS documentary ÒSoundings: The Music of Michael Colgrass,Ó which features his unique teaching methods. The Rockefeller Foundation created a special program for Colgrass called ÒArtist in the Theater at Large,Ó which led to studies in mime, acting, dance and directing in New York, commedia dellÕ arte in Milan and avant garde theater with Jerzy GrotowskiÕs Polish Theater Laboratory in Wroclaw, Poland. In l985 Colgrass became a certified trainer of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) and today combines these techniques with his 45 years of professional performing experience in his ÒExcellence In PerformanceÓ workshops. He has trained more than 25,000 people in Europe, Britain, South America, South Africa, Indonesia and throughout the United States and Canada. ColgrassÕ strategies for creativity were modeled by NLP co-founder John Grinder and also by Robert Dilts and David Gordon, and are described in DiltsÕ book, Tools For Dreamers (l991). Colgrass originated ÒDeep Listening,Ó a technique for using hypnosis with audiences to heighten concentration, which is featured in the book Leaves Before The Wind (l991), a collection of innovative NLP ideas edited by Charlotte Bretto, Judith DeLozier, John Grinder and Sylvia Topel. His articles on creativity and life skills have appeared in The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor and Music Magazine. His first book, My Lessons With Kumi, is the summation of his work as a trainer and performer.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 413 pages
• Publisher: Real People Press (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0911226400
• ISBN-13: 978-0911226409
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,008,954 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Colgrass is a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and the author of two books, "My Lessons with Kumi" and "Adventures of an American Composer." Born in Chicago in 1932, he started out as a jazz drummer and later became a classical percussionist. Since the 1960s, he has earned his living as a composer, writing for the New York Philharmonic, the Boston Symphony, and other world-class ensembles. He also teaches and writes about Neuro-Linguistic Programming. He lives in Toronto with his wife, Ulla. See www.colgrassadventures.com and www.michaelcolgrass.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PERFORM AT YOUR VERY BEST, January 6, 2002

By 

PianoMom (New York, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Lessons With Kumi: How I Learned to Perform With Confidence in Life and Work (Paperback)

I am a classical concert pianist who used to suffer from pretty unrewarding experiences performing, no matter how well I played. This book helps you deal directly with the psychological obstacles that keep your best from shining through, and keep you from being in control and enjoying a situation. It manages this through precise mental excercises which seem somewhat innocuous when you're reading about them but the moment you do them yourself you realize what has been wrong all along. This is not written as your usual self-help book, rather as a well-written and interesting novel which helps develop the ideas it holds. I recommend this to everyone. It will improve your every day life

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've read!, September 24, 2001

By 

"carito_elfortin" (Buenos Aires, Argentina.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Lessons With Kumi: How I Learned to Perform With Confidence in Life and Work (Paperback)

this is not just another self help book, this is a book to have in your bookcase for continual reference. It is so clear and it has such good ideas and exercises that you will be suprised! It is a must-have!! It is beautifully written. You will be really glad that you bought it!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Furthering My Journey, September 7, 2002

By 

Dr. Don Fitz-Ritson (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Lessons With Kumi: How I Learned to Perform With Confidence in Life and Work (Paperback)

Michael Colgrass is a very practical and entertaining writer. This book is a joy and inspiration to read. It explain how to tap into your 'Brain' and run your life in the best possible way.

By applying the concepts he has outlined and skillfully presented in real life situations, Michael Colgrass opens news levels of learning and understanding for all.

As one appreciates the working of the 'Brain', one cannot help but realize in a compassionate way, that due to our own ignorance, we at times sabotage our lives.

This book outlines in practical ways how to take charge and run your life in all areas to the best of your ability.

Thanks Michael for this wonderful book which also provided an additional dimention to my holidays.

Next year I will tell you of my progress. I have also recommended a number of my patients to get this book.

Warm regards,

Dr. Don