The Clarinet BBoard

Brain surgery on musician--Dateline NBC 6/17

Author: Lisa  Date:   2005-06-18 18:24 http://www.afm.org/public/press/bc_dateline.php The above link is just a tiny blurb that I found, and I couldn't find another summary of last night's program anywhere. I tuned into the program late but still wanted to share this for discussion. Brian O'Connor is a professional French horn player in California (AFM Local #47) and has played on movie soundtracks and I'm not sure what/where else. (I'll betcha John Moses either knows him or has at least heard of him... ) Anyway, Brian had a brain tumor that needed to be removed, and doctors took every precaution to ensure that his musical abilities would remain intact after surgery. They woke Brian up once his brain was exposed and began questioning him as electric probes touched different areas of the brain near the tumor. The doctors showed him music and he had to hum it. They had him read the letter names of notes on a staff. AND they had a plastic model of horn valves and trigger key so that Brian could read music and simulate "playing" (fingering) while the docs found the areas of the brain he was using for each activity and worked around them. He stayed in the hospital for about 5 weeks and was back to playing his horn professionally after clearance from his doctors some times afterwards. Brian said that the first time he tried to play his horn after surgery it sounded awful, but he was soon able to regain it all back with practice. I know this was about a horn player and not a clarinetist, but the show absolutely intrigued me because of the musical topic and I wanted to share. I think it's awesome that the medical profession would go to such extremes to preserve an individual's musical career while doing necessary brain surgery. Post Edited (2005-06-19 02:18)

Reply To Message

Avail. Forums  |  Need a Login? Register Here

User Login  User Name:  Password:  Remember my login:

Forgot Your Password? Enter your email address or user name below and a new password will be sent to the email address associated with your profile.