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Taken from The Art of Breathing Book
Nancy Zi was born in the United States in 1930 to Chinese parents. Raised in China since
infancy, she returned to the United States in 1949. She attended Millikin University in
Illinois and was graduated with a bachelor's degree in music, majoring in vocal
performance. She continued her vocal training in Chicago and New York City. She has more
than thirty years of experience in teaching singing and has performed extensively as a
professional vocal soloist in concerts, operas, operettas, oratorios, and television and
radio programs.
Growing up in china, Nancy Zi was greatly influenced by the Eastern belief that our mental
and physical well-being is governed by an inner energy called chi. She has been a fervent
practitioner of chi kung for many years. Through this ancient Chinese discipline, which
teaches proper handling of breath, body movements, and meditation, she has derived great
benefits. With years of experience, Nancy Zi realized that the vital energy used in
Western civilization for classical singing and other performances is comparable to chi.
She found that in Western culture this inner vitality is directed outward for external
accomplishments, whereas in Eastern culture it is directed primarily inward for healing
and maintaining good health.
Weaving together the best of these two cultures, Nancy Zi has created chi yi, which
literally means "the art of breathing," a new and simple way to acquire a sound
breathing technique. Through the direct approach of teaching chi yi, the author hopes to
dispel the mysticism that surrounds the generating, cultivating, and utilizing of inner
energy to improve overall performance and well-being. In her book and video, The Art of
Breathing, Nancy Zi discusses what she has learned and developed -- a program of effective
breathing principles accessible to an international audience.
The author and her husband of 44 years, S. Paul Li, spent much of their married life in
Hong Kong, but they have now settled in Los Angeles, California. They have a son and a
daughter.
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