Oslo, Norway – December 7, 2017 – Nobel Peace Prize Concert organizers today announced that one of the six existing “Hibaku Pianos,” a remarkable collection of pianos which survived the atomic bombing in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, will make a special appearance at the 24th annual event in Oslo, Norway on December 11th at Telenor Arena, honoring the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, ICAN, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
The Yamaha upright piano, built in 1938, was exposed to the atomic bombing at a private home in Ujina, Minami-ku, Hiroshima City, 3km from the hypocenter. The owner donated the piano to Yagawa Mitsunori, a 66-year-old noted piano tuner/technician of Yagawa Piano Studio, who specializes in restoring pianos that were exposed to the Hiroshima bombing, and is also a second-generation atomic bombing survivor. Mr. Yagawa has restored the piano to be able to be used in performances, while keeping its condition as close as possible to its condition at the time of the bombing. The piano has featured in many concerts throughout Japan, as well as at a series of events in New York in 2010.
“Music has no borders,” said Yagawa Mitsunori, who tours across Japan, playing the piano at peace concerts. “I hope that people hearing the timbre of the Hibaku Piano at this concert will be an opportunity for them to reflect upon the preciousness of peace, and the horror of nuclear weapons.
This piano has experienced the tragedy of the atomic bombings. Therefore, there is a message which only it can convey. As a second generation Hibakusha (atomic bomb survivor) in Hiroshima, and as a piano tuner, continuing this is my life’s mission.”
“We are privileged to be able to present one of the Hibaku Pianos at this year’s Nobel Peace Prize Concert,” said the concert´s producers Odd Arvid Strømstad and Kristian Kirkvaag. “Yagawa Mitsunori’s lifelong dedication to preserving the pianos that survived the atomic bomb at Hiroshima and spreading a message of peace is singular, and we’re honored to share his life’s work at the Concert.”
Internationally acclaimed actor, producer and activist David Oyelowo will host the 24th Annual Nobel Peace Prize Concert with headliner John Legend, Danish band Lukas Graham, Swedish singer/songwriter Zara Larsson, Norwegian DJ/producer Matoma, Norwegian singer/songwriter Sigrid, and youth performance company Le PeTiT CiRqUe®
(Nobel Peace Prize Concert organizers , N.Sethurupan)
