About Me

I am a Certified MBS Practitioner, sharing the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais' Mind Body Studies.

My Story

My interest in movement and all things somatic, came at age 19 when diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. In an effort to avoid surgery, I found Dr. Alice Brandfonbrenner at the Chicago Rehabilitation Institute. With her guidance, I successfully recovered from this initial struggle with arm pain and began a live-long quest for injury prevention. When choosing a teacher and institution for my doctorate, I chose to work with Dr. Roberta Gary at CCM. A polio survivor herself and one of the first Licensed Body Mapping Professional (formerly called Andover Educators), I felt she was the very best teacher to continue to address ongoing movement/playing issues. She introduced me to the Feldenkrais Method by referring me to Cynthia Allen, Feldenkrais Practitioner, and a senior trainer in the Foundation for Movement Intelligence. With Cynthia, I expanded my somatic awareness and became a certified Bones for Life Teacher. After leaving full-time music to devote more time to assisting others in their movement quests, I became a Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Spiritual Director, and MBS Practitioner. All this led to my working with the “whole” self as the best way to achieve a greater result in the prevention of injuries and certainly during recovery from injury.

I have an MBS (Mind, Body Studies) Feldenkrais practice in Louisville, Kentucky, where I work with musicians seeking a better understanding of their bodies, avoiding injury, and having a greater musical result in their playing and performing.

While I am now dedicating my efforts to the movement realm and not solo performing, you can hear me regularly accompanying my 13-year old son, an advanced violinist and singer. They can be heard performing in the Louisville community and around the world on Youtube.

Robert is married to Rajesh Shah, a yoga teacher and holistic nutritionist. Robert is a dedicated plant-based and gluten-free cook and uses food, just as movement, as medicine.