Japanese author Haruki Murakami will host radio special to blow away ‘corona-related blues’

Murakami is one of Japan’s most acclaimed authors, achieving breakthrough success with Norwegian Wood in 1987

Japan has reported nearly 16,000 confirmed infections and 633 deaths but the government has been criticised for lack of testing

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Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 1:30pm, 12 May 2020Updated: 9:01pm, 12 May 2020

Haruki Murakami, one of Japan’s most acclaimed novelists, will host a radio special to try to lift the nation’s spirits as a state of emergency over the novel coronavirus lingers.

Murakami, whose breakout novel Norwegian Wood debuted in 1987, will play favourite songs and welcome listener comments during a “Stay Home Special”, the name evoking a plea from Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike for residents to avoid going out.

“I’m hoping that the power of music can do a little to blow away some of the corona-related blues that have been piling up,” Murakami wrote on a webpage promoting the special.

Japan has reported nearly 16,000 confirmed infections and 633 deaths to date.

Although those tallies are relatively low given its population of 126 million, critics say the low rate of testing has made it difficult to trace the virus, which has led to a series of in-hospital infections, crippling some facilities.

Japan has conducted 188 tests per 100,000 people, compared with 3,159 in Italy and 3,044 in Germany, data from a panel of medical experts advising the government showed last week.

The world’s third-largest economy is on the cusp of a deep recession with many analysts projecting a double-digit contraction in the current quarter, as the pandemic forces households to stay home and businesses to shut down.