What if your drummer was a master therapeutic bodyworker and yoga instructor with a trauma background whose clients include Veterans, Academy, Grammy and Emmy winners, incarcerated youth and adults, and disaster/post conflict refugees?

• Mitigate Touring Stress, Potential Substance Abuse, and Post-Performance Depression

• Enhance Band Communications, Cohesion, and Performance

• Yoga, Breathwork, Mindfulness, Therapeutic Bodywork, and Nutrition, Plus In-context Support to Ensure optimal Well-being While On the Road

• Avoid the stigma of having support on the road and staying off the media's radar by having it be a band member.  

Building team cohesiveness. An unshakable and shared "center of the cyclone" that withstands the vicissitudes of the road, keeps the vibe high and the performances excellent.

A mastery of self leads to optimal creativity & performance and musicians return home a better version of themselves.

CONTACT : [email protected]

mobile: +1.484.542.0249

Inspired by personal goals of the artist and band members, each individual's routine is refined by consultations. This includes a comprehensive intake to gain clarity on health challenges (previous injuries, performance related discomfort, current challenges) and lifestyle patterns (sleep, social, mental health etc.)

After identifying common triggers and cues, good habits to leverage and those that could get in the way, everyone is provided easily accessible, flexible, and high leverage personal and group routines that foster well-being and resilience.

* Routines are designed around rehearsal and touring schedules.

A sample rehearsal program may include:

Upon rising, morning breath and movement (yoga) - 20-30min.

Inclusion of nutrient dense super-foods:

green foods, polyphenols and phytonutrients, cleansing and mineralizing teas, adaptogens, medicinal mushrooms, and lemon water to ensure clean, nourishing start the day and bullet proof immunity.

Breakfast...

Pre-Rehearsal Group Session - Mindful Breathwork

Rehearsal/Band Programming: - (Band Promotional Schedules etc.

Micro-breaks (breath and movement) throughout the day to provide relief and revitalize in context as the day progresses and to prevent cumulative stress, tension, and discomfort. ie. 5 min. every hour.

Post Rehearsal, Group Breath, Mindfulness, and Movement Session to de-escalate and build band cohesion before dinner and a restorative evening - (yoga/targeted mobility/mindful movement) - 20-30min.

** Touring schedules would consider transit and promotional schedules,

Resources:

• Support videos will be provided so performers can practice in private with guidance on their own.

• Individual therapeutic bodywork sessions tailored to client needs can be provided along with private yoga and coaching sessions.

• Michael is near Rock Lititz in Lititz, PA the East Coast's premier tour production and rehearsal facility.

Along with being available for recording and touring wellness, I can embed on tour as both a musician/drummer and therapist working with lead talent and keeping the band and staff high vibe through private, trauma-informed yoga, mindful breath work, therapeutic bodywork sessions, nutrition, and lifestyle coaching - the ideal, comprehensive, in-context support system.

My experience as an Integrative, Somatic Therapist, and Ashtanga Yoga Instructor for Five Star resorts combined with my experience teaching Trauma-Informed Yoga and Mindfulness in a Prison Addiction Treatment setting to address the underlying neuro-biological causes of addiction, make me uniquely qualified to work with the touring performer.

Being invested in the band's success directly as a member, adds an additional layer of trust between the client and me as we share daily routines of wellness and self-care.

Regular practice is essential to the success of any recovery program, in particular self-regulation practices that require experiential learning rather than only Cognitive Behavior Therapy. Yoga, Mindfulness, Therapeutic Bodywork, Plant-Based Nutrition, and regular consultations in context (while on tour) can stabilize the pendulum swings of the tour experiences.

Additionally, clients will develop the capacity to re-calibrate to an internal base-line of peace and energized calm after a performance. Thus, reducing withdrawal from the performance high to ensure the greatest potential of success when coming off the road and getting back into the sweetness of "mundane" activities of life among family and friends. The result, the best possible performance and touring experience for all.

Click to read "Inspiration vs. Expiration" my article about wellness on the road.

Click to read my 21 Century Drummer Article - Protect Your Career - "Stretching Re-Imagined" on Page 10 - addressing pain management and opioid addiction potentials.

A life-long musician playing drums, Michael feeds his soul behind the kit. He has many years experience and continues to play professionally and in a variety of genres. 

 In addition to playing professionally, he’s developed an entire on-line yoga and mindfulness program specifically for drummers to help them access their full potential, mitigate performance related injuries, manage stress, anxiety and prevent post performance depression.  

The Yoga4drummers program now is offered by one of the leading on-Line drum education platforms, Drum Channel. Michael was also chosen by Drum Workshop-DW Drums to Lead Episode 13 of their Fitness Fridays Series in 2020. 

A native of Easton, PA, Lear makes his home on the East Coast when he is in the United States where he enjoys visiting with family, friends and his cat Sayagyi. 

Vibration - Mystik Fool

I'm On My Way - Mystik Fool

Shine - Mystik Fool

Yellow Feathers- Mystik Fool

Peace and Love (Sound Check) - Mystik Fool

Every musician knows the touring lifestyle and unceasing demands of celebrity are both challenging and exhausting, not to mention have the potential to lead to substance abuse to manage stress, anxiety, pain or fatigue.  In some cases this can also lead to post-performance depression.  

Many musicians have reported that traveling in close quarters, being away from home, experiencing physical discomfort from a grueling schedule, pre-performance anxiety, emotional let-downs after the great show, and chronic fatigue are just a few of the potential stressors. And stressors such as these can unravel the harmony among band members, can make drug abuse attractive, and magnify whatever misery experienced if allowed to take control.

Proven somatic and mindfulness practices leverage the body-mind's inner technology to empower musicians to achieve optimize health, enhance performance and creativity, improve interpersonal relationships and overall well-being while creating a new touring experience --one that has them returning home a better, happier, more integrated, whole, and balanced human.  What could be better than that?....To do what they absolutely love without the energetic, emotional fallout commonly associated with celebrity. 

Preparing for a tour?  Have lead talent with anxiety or facing substance abuse issues on the road? Or just interested in creating the most vibrant, healthy, dynamic touring team....Consult with me to design self-care strategies for better touring health from a fellow musician and life-time somatic practitioner who gets it!

CONTACT : [email protected]

mobile: +1.484.542.0249

You'll have access to my over 30 years of experience as a therapeutic body-worker and yoga instructor, as well as a lifetime drummer. I've shared my expertise with clients spanning five continents, including a few Academy, Grammy and Emmy award winners, (some folks you know well) and - many figures prominent in business and industry - (think Fortune 100.).

In addition, I've worked with refugees in disaster and post war regions in Africa, South Asia and the Caribbean, veterans, incarcerated adults and youth, and those in drug and alcohol treatment; Not to mention beginner to advanced yogis at some of the top Yoga Shalas, Resorts, and Health Clubs on the planet.

"Across the board and without exception, in an environment of safety, trust, and choice, everyone has been able to change their game with practices involving mindfulness and movement!"

- M