Reminds me of an incredible story about jazz guitarist Pat Martino. The gist is, he was a brilliant jazz guitarist who had a brain aneurism and lost virtually all of his long term memory, including how to play the guitar. He spent several years after this relearning everything, from old recordings and stories from other people. Eventually, he was able to regain his stature and virtuosity! He is a really amazing person, and I'm suprised so few people have heard his story. See http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=29896#.UmL6vZ... for a summary