Leon Fleisher

pianoIn 1964, Leon Fleisher was forced to give up performing having been stricken by a mysterious ailment that caused the fourth and fifth fingers of his right hand to curl under when he played. Three decades later he was finally diagnosed with a neuromuscular movement disorder known as focal dystonia. Fleisher tried Botox treatments but needed additional help for his arm and hand which he found with Rolfing structural integration. The Rolfing manipulation was able to soften up the muscles and tendons in his arm which felt like petrified wood and release Fleisher’s right hand that had become so clenched he could not open it. By 1996 Fleisher was able to give a two-hand performance for the first time in 30 years. Fleisher continues to perform. More recently, in April 2010, Fleisher performed with the Irish Chamber Orchestra.