Violin Made of A-Bombed Hiroshima Tree Played for Peace

Hiroshima, Aug. 7 (Jiji Press)–A muku tree that survived the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima, a city in western Japan, 81 years ago has found a new life after death as a violin, whose melodies convey messages of peace and hope. “I want people to feel the life force of trees through the sound,” said violinist Asaka Shirai, a 61-year-old Hiroshima native. The violin was made from a tree that survived the atomic bombing about some 530 meters from ground zero on Aug. 6, 1945, and was maintained by the city government until it died in 2022. The tree was set to be discarded, but a local rotary club took it over and turned it into the violin in 2025, the 80th anniversary of the bombing. Shirai performed 12 suites at a peace-themed concert in Hiroshima on Saturday while explaining the violin’s background. An 81-year-old woman, who was exposed to the bombing at the age of 3 months, praised the performance of music for conveying hope for peace. Rika Nakamoto, a 62-year-old second-generation hibakusha atomic bomb survivor, said, “I face the challenge of passing on the experiences of my predecessors to future generations, but I was moved by this new form of storytelling.” Shirai said, “By playing with this violin, our generation will convey the feelings of hibakusha atomic bomb survivors.” There were 159 trees registered as atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima as of April, according to the city government, Chikara Horiguchi, an 81-year-old tree doctor who has been looking after atomic bomb survivor trees for some 40 years, welcomed the rebirth of such a tree as a violin. “A tree that experienced the atomic bombing remains in a different form and is playing a new role,” he said. When the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, or Nihon Hidankyo, received the Nobel Peace Prize two years ago, seeds from atomic bomb survivor trees were planted in a botanical garden in Oslo, Norway, where the award ceremony took place. “We nurture peace by planting trees,” Horiguchi said. “I hope to convey not only the horrors of the atomic bombing but also the resilience of life.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]