One of the most incredible, virtuosic musicians of the modern age, Michael Brecker, is fighting for his life.

NEW YORK (AP) - Michael Brecker felt a sharp pain in his back while performing at last August’s Mount Fuji Jazz Festival in Japan, but initially thought it was just another of those ailments afflicting touring musicians that an ice pack or massage could alleviate.

Instead, it turned out to be the first outward symptom of a life-threatening disease that has temporarily silenced Brecker’s saxophone. His best hope for a cure lies in finding a donor who’s a suitable genetic match for a blood stem cell and bone marrow transplant.

He had always been the more introverted of the Brecker brothers - with Randy on trumpet they led one of the most successful jazz-rock fusion groups - preferring to speak through his instrument.

But now his illness - diagnosed as MDS, or myelodysplastic syndrome, a cancer in which the bone marrow stops producing enough healthy blood cells - has led him to speak out to encourage people to enroll in a donor program.

“It’s something that doesn’t come naturally. . . . I obviously miss playing and writing music,” said the 56-year-old Brecker, his voice sounding frail in a telephone interview from his suburban home in Hastings-on-Hudson where he’s recuperating after being hospitalized for nearly seven weeks for chemotherapy treatment. “On the other hand, this whole experience has allowed me to be a conduit to attract attention for a cause that’s much larger than me . . . for people to go get tested (for the marrow donor program) because I know a lot of lives will be saved.”

He urgently needs a bone marrow transplant, and his most likely matches are Ashkenazi Jews. For more information, see Michael’s site and click the link titled Michael’s Current Challenge.

UPDATE at 8/28/05 8:50:24 pm:

Here is the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Registry for Ashkenazi Jews.