Leadership in the training of 21^st century performing artists at the Peabody Institute includes the integration of current scientific knowledge and state-of-the-field multidisciplinary medical care into the foundation of a conservatory education. Peabody’s rich history of professional music training at the highest level coupled with its alliance with some of the world’s best medical care providers and researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine position it to take a leading role in the field of performing arts medicine.

The aims of Peabody’s initiatives in performing arts and medicine are to:

• Create access to specialized and compassionate healthcare for musicians
• De-stigmatize/de-catastrophize occupational health issues
• Integrate healthcare and training for the welfare of performing artists
• Empower musicians and educators with knowledge of how to get and stay in the “game” as elite performers
• Advance research in performing arts medicine and science-based pedagogy

The statistics are daunting and the needs are great. Reported rates of playing-related musculoskeletal and neurological disorders (PRMD) range from 39 to 89 percent in professional musicians, 17 to 38 percent in high school musicians, and 67 percent in children. Spearheaded by Peabody faculty and staff, an interdisciplinary team of Johns Hopkins experts and specialists is building an unprecedented, needed, and innovative model of healthcare and education for musicians and dancers.