Hypnotist-Comedian Boris Cherniak Wants to Play the Flute for You

[00:00:04] Welcome to The Talent Show. I'm your host, Tom Alexander. Today's guest, or guest performer, is the incredible Boris Cherniak, a comedian who combines hypnosis in his act, which has been defined as orchestrated by way of Russia.

[00:00:22] He's performed in Las Vegas on cruise ships, at colleges, and overseas to Afghanistan and Kuwait to entertain the troops. He's also a motivational speaker who presents worldwide at corporate events, conference keynotes, and more. But today, the incredible Boris is going to discuss and hopefully demonstrate his hidden and no doubt, quote, incredible talent for playing the flute.

[00:00:51] Boris joins us right after these words. Stay tuned. Finding a great career has always been a challenge.

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[00:02:10] Listen today. Welcome back to The Talent Show. I'm Tom Alexander. My guest is the incredible Boris. Incredible. How are you, incredible? I'm trying to figure this out. I'm not exactly sure how to address you, but I'm going to stick with incredible. Oh, well, everybody calls me Boris. It's my real name.

[00:02:40] Born in Moscow. So that's basically how it works. Come from that side, you're given that Slavic. Like Handel. And as a performer, I started performing as, by the way, I deal with magic of the mind. And that's the most amazing thing. We'll get into that very shortly. But as a performer, I started performing as just Boris. I thought I would be just like Cher and Oprah and Sting. Yeah. Yeah, exactly.

[00:03:07] One person name, but promoters, people who were putting me on the marquee needed something else. So they kept adding a whole bunch of different stuff. That was stupendous. Amazing. You name it. So I stuck with one handle that I didn't mind as much. And incredible kind of stuck. And when people see me, it's usually between amazing and incredible. They can't remember which one, but incredible is the official tag. Well, that's good.

[00:03:34] I can, you know, there are other adjectives that, you know, you may not want, like the annoying. I've gotten that a couple of times. But no, incredible. Listen, incredible is great. I would I'll take incredible any day. You know, my last name is Alexander by way of Alexopoulos, but it's Alexander here. And, you know, Alexander the Great. And I joke around with our producer, Charles Epstein.

[00:04:02] I say great spelled G-R-A-T-E. Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great. But anyway. I actually lived in Greece for a little while as a kid. My parents, as they were immigrating through different countries, at some point in time, we became citizens of no country and were traveling until we got to Canada finally and then U.S.

[00:04:26] And Athens was the place that I spent eight and a half months in and got to. I was a kid at the time, but got to see it in a kid's eyes. Right. And the funny thing was, as children, you get to go for free to all the museums. Yes. So I visited every one of them and I had a little brother that I dragged along with me. His name is Alexander. Right. Well, yes. Yes. There we go.

[00:04:56] And he was a cute kid. And I know Greeks specifically absolutely love children. And he would get all the chocolate bars. Everybody's every. Yes. And all the Eon chocolate bars are the greatest. But I will tell you that, you know, it seems like it's such a communal place to live. And the and you said it. Everybody loves kids and they look after each other's kids. Everybody's everybody's parent. You know what I mean? Or older brother. It's like, absolutely.

[00:05:25] We would get stopped. And they have little kiosks all over Athens. Yes. Where you can buy everything from a bottle of water to chocolate bars. And he always got chocolate bars. And I couldn't believe how we would get stopped. And, oh, you're such a cute kid. Come with me. It wasn't in that sense. But come with me right over there. We'll get you something. And stop, grab a chocolate bar. That's for you. And I thought such wonderful people. So I'm right on board with that.

[00:05:55] Well, that's wonderful. I'm glad that was a great experience for you. Now, we got to we got to jump ahead here because what we're really here for is the flute. Now, the flute. When did you start playing it? Well, I'll give you a story. Talking about kids, I guess we lead right into that. As a kid, my parents wanted me to become an aficionado in music of any sort.

[00:06:24] And they took me to a music school to learn how to play an instrument. And when I was asked, I told them I wanted to be a rock star and I wanted to play the guitar. Yeah. And OK, it's not a glamorous story, but they tested me. They checked me and whatever they do in music school, do this, do that. And I told my father, who was devastated, that I have no talent. So time passed.

[00:06:52] And I'm living as a little kid with no talent, having a good time. But my father had a client. My dad's a hairstylist. So he had a client who was one of the top music aficionados in flute. And he told him the story that his kid was told that he has no talent. And just take a look at him. Maybe they were wrong or something is not quite right. Because I think he's creative.

[00:07:21] He writes all over the walls. That's what I used to do. I took crayons and wrote on wallpaper. But so this gentleman comes to check me out. And he says, my charts are off the scale. And this kid cannot only do music. He is somebody who could be a prodigy. And I'm going to take care of him. What do you mean take care of him? I'll teach him for free for a year.

[00:07:48] And I'll show you that he is the most amazing kid in the world. And he's talented and all of that. So he taught me to play flute. And not only that, my hands were so small at the time that I had to learn on a piccolo. A piccolo is a tiny little flute. It's played like this. Yeah. And it was such a pleasure. And as I grew older, it's something worthwhile.

[00:08:18] It just music became part of my life. Everything I do is part of my musical talents. And even the performance that I do. So there's a connection then between the flute and the mind magic, hypnosis that you do. Did one lead to another? Or were they sort of just independent? They morphed independently into each other. But I've got the grade six conservatory in flute.

[00:08:46] So that means I'm stuck with it for a little while. But I play a whole bunch of other instruments as well. Not only flute, saxophone, bass. In high school, flute was not available. So I took up saxophone. The saxophone was the thing where I got solos. And just because I was a little bit more proficient than the rest of the group, this kid can play. Okay, we'll give him something. And it just grew and grew and grew.

[00:09:13] There was a point in time, a theme park that was looking for performers. And I went and auditioned and I got the job. The problem is I didn't have a saxophone. So I didn't follow through with that job. And it was so cool that I was actually able to get that far. So I found something completely different. My performance is what came about the same time that I've got a job playing saxophone,

[00:09:42] even though I didn't take it. So that became a big portion of my show. I started performing earlier on, but it morphed. I guess I feed off of a crowd. There's nothing like getting that immediate reaction. So I'm guessing from flute to hypnosis, there was no interim period like snake charmer phase that you went through? None of that? Well, I was in a band. Does that count? I learned how to play guitar at the time.

[00:10:11] And actually, just recently, it's amazing how you get a chance to do stuff that is completely out of the realm. And it's funny how things work. I just don't know what to create out of it. Just because one leads into another and continues from one step. So I played in a band.

[00:10:39] The band, for many years, played different instruments. Actually, a flute came in there because we played a song by Men at Work. Oh, yeah. If you remember traveling right out, Comby. So there's a flute part. Yes, I remember that. And I remember the song and I remember the flute break, the flute solo in there. Exactly. So I played flute, but saxophone was the way to go.

[00:11:08] And then eventually the guitar was that I did. Well, Boris, here's what we're going to do. Take a little breather for a second. And then maybe we can come back and convince you, coach you a little bit into favoring us with a little bit of music. My guest. I love music. I'm absolutely right there with you. Wonderful. Wonderful. Well, our guest is Boris Cherniak, a.k.a. The Incredible Boris. And we're going to come back with Boris in just a moment.

[00:11:38] Now this. Back with the Incredible Boris. Boris Cherniak. He is a mind magician, hypnotist. You got to see his act. And we're going to learn more about your act in a little bit and where folks can find you and see you and learn about everything you do.

[00:12:05] But as also a musician and magician. Start with an app, yes. Yeah. They're kind of in many ways the same thing. Right.

[00:12:19] But you, you know, I would imagine to some degree these things can inform each other and help with, you know, does it does your musical background ever inform your professional work and maybe share something it might have taught you about performing, being in front of an audience? Oh, absolutely. Well, music creates a mood and I use a lot of music, whether it would be the induction music that I put in front of the performance.

[00:12:49] Induction is simply when you put people under hypnosis and that allows to guide me through the process, drowns out the audience chatter, if you like, and at the same time creates the mood. So it will be a little bit more eerie, more exciting, more something that the audience becomes a part of along with the people on my stage.

[00:13:15] And I'm a comedian who happens to present it through hypnosis. So hypnosis, music and mindset is all blended together. So I try to combine everything in one. And I just like anything else, there's a song I just recently got a chance to meet Chubby Checker, whose music I use in my performance to get people to twist.

[00:13:45] And I was just like a fangirl. Hello, sir. It was such a pleasure to meet you because I actually use your music in my performance. And he was so gracious. So absolutely love it. Yes, yes. Great history with his music in the early 1960s, Philadelphia's own Chubby Checker. That is great.

[00:14:10] And, you know, I'm listening to the tone of your voice, Boris, and it's very soothing. And sometimes I'm wondering here by just listening to you, if I'm not falling under some kind of spell, you're not trying to, you know, get me to fuck like a chicken or anything. Bark like a chicken. Bark like a chicken. Now that's a trick. That would be a trick. Yeah. I'm all about empowerment.

[00:14:38] I try to make a point of people becoming better having seen my performance rather than anything else. From the people on stage who get presented in a wonderful light to the messaging that you would see throughout the performance, whether that might be being resilient, getting stress relief, quit unwanted habits. Because part of what I do is therapeutic.

[00:15:07] There's a way to instill something in people that is absolutely worthwhile. You have no idea how much potential you already have. Yet, once I get you to notice that, people start flourishing.

[00:15:24] And being in this for many, many years, I actually get a chance to see people after the fact and see the results where they now come and meet me again with their kids and saying, I remember this and this is what you did for me. And you're responsible. And I'm not responsible. I just help people find their own abilities.

[00:15:49] So it's just a matter of getting you to find the most incredible thing about you and making it something completely worthwhile. So the incredible passes on the incredibility. Yeah. Incredible is a feeling. It's not about how great I am, which I'm just a conduit. That's why I look at it more as I am the director of events rather than star of the show.

[00:16:19] Well, that is wonderful. That is that's really, really a great perspective on it. And boy, I got to tell you, after all this, you know, we need to give a listen to you play. And we'll do that. Hopefully, on the other side of this break, we have a word from one of our work defined co podcasters. We'll be right back. This is the talent show. Hi there. I'm Peter Zollman.

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[00:17:17] Well, Boris, I know that we we talked about the flute. But you said earlier that, well, it's been a while. It isn't exactly handy. But, but you play many other instruments. And you were kind enough to share a little bit of blues guitar with us. And we got to see that we recorded it.

[00:17:44] And we're going to share it right now with our viewers and our listeners. Here we go. Here he is the incredible Boris.

[00:18:26] Boris, there you go. A little blues guitar, you know, whatever. A little BB King, Muddy Water, some, you know, a little little groove going on there. And, you know, it's nice to see that you still play, still use the guitar and kind of keep your hands in shape. Oh, definitely try. It's the most amazing thing. Music is a part of your life. And I just try to get back to it every so often.

[00:18:53] And my goodness, I know you were mentioning the flute. Flute has been a beauty from way back when. But yeah, it's been a while. Maybe I should pick that one up again, too. Well, you know, for some reason, when I think of, I mean, the guitar can be a very tranquil instrument, too. But when I think of a flute, by the way, my wife is a classically trained in flute. And she's a wonderful player.

[00:19:20] But and sometimes when the spirit moves us, we'll play piano, jazz piano. And so we'll sometimes we'll collaborate. But it is, you know, the flute is really more of a, I think, a very peaceful instrument. And to me, it goes hand in glove with hypnosis. I think so. I think it does. You can almost hear the soundtrack.

[00:19:47] Somebody's somebody's being hypnotized and you hear this sort of song. You know, everybody knows a one flute song. And that's Bach. I used to play. Yes. You know what I'm saying. But for me, way back when I remember learning how to play all of that and then coming back and playing the song. That is just heard on the radio for my teachers instead of the actual stuff that I was supposed to be playing.

[00:20:17] So that's probably me being a little bit of a reckless, a little bit of stepping outside of the box and looking for something different, something unusual. And that's where I found hypnosis. As a teenager, I read a book that sent me on a wave of just reading absolutely everything on the subject. And then I incorporated the music.

[00:20:36] I actually used the music in the shows earlier on where I played the guitar and would take a song and incorporate that into a skit that was part of it. So I would actually be playing behind the scenes while the skit was going on. So I implore everybody to do anything musical. And it adds to creativity. It adds to everything that we do. And teach that to your kids. Absolutely.

[00:21:05] Kids are the most amazing people in the world, especially with a song. Yeah, music is I've often said music has saved my life many times. It's just it's a it's some it's a real gift. I really I really truly believe that as well as magic. And and I've always been fascinated by magic. And I know a lot of folks are really curious to hear more about what you do, your act and where folks can see you.

[00:21:35] Why don't you just take a moment to just tell folks where they can find you online and and maybe perhaps some shows coming up, if you wouldn't mind. Very easy. Incredible Boris dot com. Like I said, it's a tag that got given to me. It's stuck for one reason or another. So incredible Boris dot com will tell you all about me. There's videos on there where I'm performing as well. And I'm literally traveling all over the country.

[00:22:00] I'm doing a theater casino corporate date tour called Mind Boggling. So a chance are in your area. So far, the tour has covered three countries, two hurricanes and a conference at sea. So that should tell you. You're getting around, huh? I try to have a date coming up in Boca Raton. A date in Provo, Utah. A date in Toronto.

[00:22:29] So there's so many more coming up. There's one in Las Vegas. So keep looking and a chance I'll be around the corner if you can find me and say hello. Wonderful. Well, Boris, thank you so much for your time. We really appreciate it. And thanks for playing a little bit for us. And I don't know if I've been hypnotized or not, but I feel... I'm going to be very careful.

[00:22:59] I'm going to be very careful. Very careful. Well, I feel very calm for some reason, which is... I guess that's a good thing. There he is, folks. I'm still that attitude. There it is. He is the Incredible Boris, a.k.a. Boris Cherniak. And you can find him at The Incredible Boris. Just incredibleboris.com. Or just Google me. I promise you'll find a million things. I did a whole bunch of TV stuff that the videos are still on there. Great. Terrific. Boris, thanks again.

[00:23:28] My name is Tom Alexander. Thanks so much for listening. Thanks so much for watching. And we'll see you again. So long, everybody.

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