HAMAMATSU--To Kazuo Yasumatsu, a Russian-style doll with a yellow hood, which sits in a corner of the treatment room of his acupuncture and moxibustion clinic here, is not a toy.

Instead, it's the beloved partner of a blind man that has given him the pleasure of playing music again.

The instrument is called a matryomin, a matryoshka wooden doll with the workings of a theremin inside, which can produce tones by moving the hands and fingers in the air.

REIGNITED PASSION FOR MUSIC

Yasumatsu, 69, head of the Yasumatsu Hariin clinic in Naka Ward, which is a 10-minute walk from JR Hamamatsu Station, lost his sight more than 50 years ago.

Via an encounter with a matryoshka doll, Yasumatsu, who had once given up playing the guitar, has eventually fulfilled his long-cherished dream of “performing on a musical instrument.”

Yasumatsu heard the doll-based instrument for the first time at a performance by theremin musician Masami Takeuchi this past June.

The gathering was organized by the Hamamatsu welfare association of visually impaired people, which Yasumatsu heads.

The theremin is the world’s oldest electronic musical instrument, developed in 1920 by Lev Theremin (1896-1993), a physicist from the Soviet Union. It features two antennas extending from its boxy body designed to adjust the interval and volume of a tone by moving the hands and fingers around them.

Listening to Takeuchi’s performance, Yasumatsu became enchanted by the “violin-like” smooth and gentle tone. He quickly felt like playing the theremin himself, as his passion for musical instruments was reignited after nearly half a century.

Suffering from poor eyesight from birth, Yasumatsu became blind at age 15. As many rock bands inspired by the Beatles released tunes in Japan in their heyday at that time, Yasumatsu began playing the guitar.

But the young Yasumatsu had just started studying acupuncture then, so he soon abandoned playing out of fear of his fingers becoming overly strengthened to avoid difficulties in his work. On top of that, he did not have enough time to practice the guitar.

Since the blind man cannot read scores, Yasumatsu has no choice but to hear sounds to memorize pieces. Though he once thought of playing the violin, a quality instrument costs at least 100,000 yen ($884), which is not easily affordable.

Regretting his decision not to engage in music, Yasumatsu hesitated to throw away a guitar he no longer used until some 10 years ago, whereas he had no plans to restart practicing.

Following the concert, Yasumatsu asked Takeuchi, 54, to give him lessons. Takeuchi willingly accepted the request.

Takeuchi showed him a 20-centimeter matryomin. The doll is priced at 40,000 yen or so, allowing Yasumatsu to secure an instrument on his own.

Free from keyboards or strings to press, the matryomin can be played by varying the distance between the finger tips and the instrument while listening to the generated tone.

The matryomin was easier for Yasumatsu to play than other instruments because his disability affects his playing less than one that requires hands-on manipulation. 

Initially, Yasumatsu could only produce sounds resembling those from broken instruments, but attending a lesson once a week has rendered it possible for him to play simple music pieces.

The new hobby proved especially helpful for Yasumatsu amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, in which he was forced to cancel not only the chorus session held regularly to practice Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 but also a monthly karaoke gathering with friends.

Yasumatsu said practicing the matryomin before and after his business hours every day is the best part of his life now.

“I want to play the matryomin with sighted people in the future,” he said in a lively voice.

USER FRIENDLY FOR DISABLED MUSICIANS

Takeuchi, who developed the matryomin, said he had the right side of his body paralyzed after he was stricken by cerebral hemorrhage during a theremin concert in 2016. Though he could recover from the verge of death, aftereffects remained.

Immediately following the accident, Takeuchi found many things difficult, such as making vibratos and keeping intervals stable. Refining his skills, Takeuchi became aware that his brainchild is suitable for those who cannot move one arm as well as people with vision problems.

“I hope it (matryomin) will provide a good opportunity so individuals who think playing music is impossible due to their disabilities will be able to be involved in music,” said Takeuchi.