‘Japan’s Beethoven’ exposed as fraud (and he’s not even deaf)

Shamed Japanese composer ‘faked deafness’

Japan’s most popular classical composer, who built a lucrative career on his reputation as a tortured deaf genius, has been unveiled as a fraud who cannot write a musical score — and is not even deaf, according to his ghost writer.

Mamoru Samuragochi, 50, known as the “digital-age Beethoven”, was thought to be the sole composer of popular classical symphonies as well as the soundtrack to video games including Resident Evil.

Yesterday, however, Mr Samuragochi confessed that he had been secretly paying a music teacher, Takashi Niigaki, to compose for him for 18 years.

Mr Niigaki, 43, told reporters today in