We are generally familiar with hypnotherapy as used for quitting smoking, losing weight or curing a phobia - but did you know it is also used for regaining artistic creativity or motivation?
The 1897 premier of Sergei Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 1 was expected to be the start of a promising career for the young Moscow Conservatory graduate. Unfortunately, the combination of an inept conductor and under-rehearsed orchestra resulted in an appalling cachophoney of a performance that was mauled by the critics.
Totally disillusioned, Rachmaninov wrote nothing more for three years until, at the suggestion of a friend, he visited the hypnotherapist and cellist Nikolai Dahl. The therapy broke the artistic and confidence block and Rachmaninov was inspired to write the - now famous - Piano Concerto No. 2. If you know the piece, you will appreciate how full of optimism it is - and Rachmaninov never looked back!
