When trains depart from platforms at stations across Japan, they are accompanied by a simple melody unique to the station and/or trainline. Designed to invoke a sense of relaxation as passengers take a seat on the train, railway operators have worked closely with scientists over the past 3 decades to perfect the tunes. They have concluded that the ideal length of a jingle for optimum calmness and relaxation is about 7 seconds, and now hundreds of melodies are played throughout the country as trains depart from their stations.
The jingles are well known amongst both residents and travellers to Japan, having often become a main subject of discussion for train enthusiasts, and has also opened a gateway for artists and creators to develop some interesting replications of the tunes.

One such creative, is Hitome (@atarime_400), a self-proclaimed calculator “pianist” who has gained a rather large following on twitter for his odd yet skillful musical ability.
Most recently, Hitome has put together a musical medley of station jingle replications – from the Kanto area – made with calculators.

In the video we see Hitome imitate Japanese station tunes on a handful of calculators. The names of the corresponding stations are included in a note in the top right hand corner of the screen, but if you cover this with your hand, you can create a simple quiz of “Which station is it?”
Hitome manages to capture the melodies perfectly, copying the well known jingles note-for-note and chord-for-chord. The replications are so good that, upon hearing the video, visitors or residents to the Kanto area might believe they are being haunted by the jingles.

A number of followers commented on Hitome’s latest video; “An amazing fluid performance. Are you a professional calculator musician?” – @bouya_p
“It’s amazing what you can do with a calculator!” – @kyutaro15
“When I hear this overseas, I feel at home.” – @Etekichi7

It’s not just Kanto though, Hitome has also replicated well known tunes from other stations across Japan, and has even managed to perfectly reproduce popular tunes from a range of musical genres on the calculator.
There’s no question about it, Hitome has definitely mastered the musical calculator.