5 minutes with ... Seymour Bernstein.

Internationally renowned pianist, teacher, composer and writer, Seymour Bernstein studied with Nadia Boulanger, Georges Enesco and Sir Clifford Curzon. He has appeared as soloist and collaborative pianist in Asia, Europe and the Americas. His book, With Your Own Two Hands (G. Schirmer), is required reading in music departments throughout the world.

Your recent book, Monsters and Angels: Surviving a Career in Music, is an inspiring and depressing expose of our profession. How have readers reacted?

Almost everyone called me brave, which is heart-warming but surprising, since bravery was the very last thing on my mind.

So why did you write it?

Relating howl coped with personal and musical problems would, I felt, help others who have suffered (or are suffering) similar problems. Moreover, I wanted to warn young aspiring musicians of possible career pitfalls. Average music lovers should also know the truth about music careers. Finally, writing one's memoirs is a process of deep and stringent self-analysis; it was a catharsis for me.

Any regrets about writing something so intense and personal?

Not at all. I could have made it longer. But, yes, it was emotionally draining; self-analysis always is. The most difficult part was reliving my army days. As I wrote in the book, I kept two diaries of my Korean War experiences. They had been tucked away for forty-five years. When it was time to add this chapter to my book, I began reading them and wept an entire day.

What is your teaching philosophy?

To make people feel good about themselves by helping them express their deepest emotions through music. It's a process of integrating feeling, thinking, sensory perception and physical coordination--all the requirements of a healthy, well-adjusted person. That's why productive practicing can lead towards an integration of the whole person.

Surely, humor also plays a role. I love your witty, clever Insects: Eight Characteristic Studies for Piano.

Yes, I love to poke fun at people, situations and even myself.

My favorite is The Black Fly.

My "Close Encounters of the Fly Kind" began long before I wrote The Black Fly I performed Bartok's From the Diary of a Fly as an encore at my Town Hall debut in 1954. The piece begins calmly, grows into a frenzy of buzzing dissonance and becomes calm again as the fly seems to land. The "ham" in me could not resist holding the final tones with my left hand, rising from my bench and swatting an imaginary fly with my right hand on the side of the concert grand. In those days, this was a far cry from concert decorum, especially at one's New York City debut.

Were critics "buzzing"?

Well, the audience went so wild that I had to play it again! A few days later, the mail brought a long box along with a note from Carlos Buhler, a distinguished teacher: "Better use this next time to kill the fly. Pianists ought to protect their hands!" Enclosed was a sequin-covered fly swatter!

Arthur Houle is founder and director of the International Festival for Creative Pianists (www.pianofestival.org). Houle has taught at the New England and Boston Conservatories, the Universities of Iowa, North Dakota and Texas-Austin and, most recently, at Albertson College.