bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

Minoru Mukaiya is one of the world’s most played musicians, with millions of people across Japan listening to his songs every day – but most of them do not even notice.
Mukaiya is a composer of “Hassha Merodii” or “train departure melodies”, short jingles that whisk commuters on their way at some of the world’s busiest stations.
Almost no one would know his most famous track by name, a catchy electronic ditty broadcast for departures from platforms three and four at Tokyo’s Shibuya station – the world’s third busiest – but millions have it on their brains for hours after their commute.
Asked how many train jingles he has created, the 61-year-old - a former keyboard player for jazz-fusion band Casiopea - pauses. 
He has lost count and an assistant rushes over with a list.
“170? What? I wrote 170,” he said, exploding with laughter. “That can’t be right!”

自分の音楽を聞きに来ました。 pic.twitter.com/KGzJnTc2dM
— 向谷実 (@MinoruMukaiya) February 24, 2018

“Hassha Merodii” is so common now in Japan that locals are unfazed when the sharp twang of an electronic keyboard or an organ’s trill spills out of a loudspeaker but tourists are often thrilled.
Nevertheless, Mukaiya’s work has attracted a cult following.
He has more than 34,000 Twitter followers, performs the ditties at concerts to thousands of screaming fans and is now banned from playing at Ginza station – the epicentre of Tokyo swank – after a live show there sparked pandemonium.
Fans tell him the music is “good for their health, for their work, for walking. It warms them up” after a hard commute to the office, Mukaiya said in an interview in his music room.
“I want them to be happy.”
World’s oldest man likes his samurai shows and hot baths
“Hassha Merodii” started when train operators were looking for ways to make their stations stand out and came up with the idea of a catchy jingle.
The songs are capped at seven seconds – the “dwell time” train operators have to cram people into packed commuter trains and still, famously, run on time.

もう1年以上前のお遊びですが、来年もまた遊べたらいいなって思う師走です。 pic.twitter.com/slaGoZNI3M
— 向谷実 (@MinoruMukaiya) December 29, 2017

A spokesman for the JR East train company said they were introduced “to prevent passengers from dashing onto the train”.
But despite the short time frame, Mukaiya said that each ditty packs in a story.
In Japan’s ancient capital Kyoto, “we have a deep respect for culture, so the song sounds more respectful of Japanese culture”, he explained, sandwiched between musical instruments and computer screens.
The rapturous crescendo and rising pitch in Shibuya station’s departure song, on the other hand, is a nod to the train’s uphill journey to the next platform.
Train station dog who stole Japan’s heart rehired to welcome tourists
“The Toyoko line used to be up the stairs on a very high level. But now the Toyoko line has moved to the subway, and the journey from Shibuya to the next station is a very steep slope,” he said.
“So I thought the departure song … needs to make it feel like the mountain train.”
Other jingles nod to local history. The station at Takadanobaba, the home to popular anime series Astro Boy, pays homage to the cartoon with a jingle version of the show’s theme tune.

And Osaka station features a sound bite of “I Guess I Really do Love You”, one of the region’s most famous songs.
One of the distinguishing features of Mukaiya’s work is that the individual tunes at each station along a line can be combined to form a coherent song.
The jingles have allowed Mukaiya to combine his two passions, music and trains.
His interest in railways was first kindled as an eight-year-old when Japan’s first ever Shinkansen bullet train glided into Tokyo Station a week before the 1964 Olympics.
“I thought that this is a kind of science fiction world,” he said.
How wild boars are taking over Japan’s small, rapidly ageing towns
Two decades later, he released one of the world’s first train simulator video games for fellow enthusiasts, amassing a huge following - it even appeared on Sony’s PlayStation consoles, which are more typically home to games about war, space battles and zombies. 
The game was so realistic that train operators around the country started asking Mukaiya to design something similar to teach their conductors and drivers.

He even designed a life-size mock-up of a train conductor’s compartment – complete with control panel – that occupies pride of place in his office.
Staring out to an imaginary platform, he rings a bell – confirming the train is clear to leave – and assumes his position at the wheel, watching the monitor above for the traffic light to turn green before taking off.
When the train pulls into the next station he walks back over to the carriage door, grinning. 
A makeshift platform projected from overhead, the number 10 appearing at his feet. 
He has lined up the train doors with the platform exit perfectly.


Hong Kong stocks rebound from US$196 billion rout on China PMI reports, NPC meeting

From geek to chic: Japan PM stuns women’s fashion show with trendy new look

Standard Chartered to open sixth Hong Kong wealth centre, increase headcount: Mary Huen

Why a Trump-Putin Ukraine peace deal could be good news for North Korea

Japan

Jingle bells! Meet Japan’s most heard - but least known - musician, who’s dedicated his life to writing music for train stations 

Japanese musician Minoru Mukaiya speaking at his workplace in Tokyo last month. Mukaiya is a composer of ‘hassha merodii’ or train departure melodies, short jingles that whisk commuters on their way at some of the world's busiest stations. Photo: AFP

This picture taken on March 1, 2018 shows Japanese musician Minuru Mukaiya posing with a train simulation unit at his workplace in Tokyo. Mukaiya is a composer of "hassha merodie" or "train departure melodies", short jingles that whisk commuters on their way at some of the world's busiest stations. / AFP PHOTO / Kazuhiro NOGI / TO GO WITH Japan-music-transport-lifestyle,FEATURE by Justine Landis-Hanley

This picture taken on March 1, 2018 shows Japanese musician Minuru Mukaiya playing electronic music on a piano at his workplace in Tokyo. Mukaiya is a composer of "hassha merodie" or "train departure melodies", short jingles that whisk commuters on their way at some of the world's busiest stations. / AFP PHOTO / Kazuhiro NOGI / TO GO WITH Japan-music-transport-lifestyle,FEATURE by Justine Landis-Hanley

Culture

Music

Minoru Mukaiya, 61, has created 170 train jingles and has more than 34,000 Twitter followers - but his actual audience is in the millions, even if they don’t know it
