Violinist Atsuko Tenma (70) appeared on Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's long-running talk show "Tetsuko's Room" (TV Asahi) on January 21st. She spoke about why she started playing the violin and her memories of her late parents.
Tenma was entrusted with the Romanian untold song "Ballad of Nostalgia" by an exiled musician and introduced to Japan, becoming an unprecedented hit in the classical music world. He began playing at the age of six after his mother bought him a violin at Toyoko Department Store in Shibuya, Tokyo. "I still wonder why my mother bought me a violin," he says.
After that, she passed the audition for NHK Educational TV's "Violin Lessons" and appeared on the show. "For some reason, I got in. When I asked the program staff later, they said, 'The reason why Tenma Atsuko got in was because she had good responses and a loud voice.'" she explained.
At the end of the program, her mother took her to meet the instructor to say goodbye. "(The instructor) said, 'You're not a very good violinist, but I've never seen a child enjoy playing the violin so much. So let him continue,'" she said, and so she decided to continue playing.
"After your concert, your parents stayed up all night waiting for you," says Tetsuko.
"When I came home drunk after the party, my parents would be sitting across from each other in the kitchen, staring blankly. When I told them, 'Thank you for today,' they would both say, 'Today was a great day.' I still can't forget that. Now that I live alone, I still wish I could hear those words from my parents."
