By Katie Litwin

The Olympics: where true colors are revealed; the one place where the cream always rises to the top, no matter what obstacles are in the way; and this doesn’t just apply to the sports. It seems that international scandal has arisen as the “modern day Beethoven” is revealed to be a fraud, neither a composer nor deaf.

Mamoru Samuragochi, of Japan has, since the 1990s, been revered throughout Japan and most of the world, composing masterpieces such as “Hiroshima”, a piece that delves into the feelings and experience associated with the horrific bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the time of World War II. His fame heightened when the brilliant composer became deaf because of a degenerative disorder, but he defeated the odds, trusting his “inner sense of sounds” to continue to compose. However, this incredibly empowering story was revealed as nothing more than a tall tale when the real composer, Takashi Niigaki, a part-time lecturer at a music college, came forward and identified himself as Mr. Samuragochi’s ghost writer.

The shocking news came on Thursday, just after Daisuke Takahashi, an Olympic figure skater, announced that he would use Mr. Samuragochi’s compositions in his routines because he so admired and loved his work. Apparently, the deep admiration Takahashi has for the “composer” was enough to crack the seal of confidence Mr. Niigaki had with Mr. Samuragochi over the years to protect his identity as the modern day Beethoven. When questioned, Niigaki said he could “not bear the thought” of the Olympic skater becoming tied up in the scandal.

What is more shocking than Mr. Samuragochi’s lack of actually composing the music is his made-up disorder. When Niigaki unraveled the truth on Thursday he explained that Samuragochi has never actually been deaf, as he listened and gave feedback on all of his compositions.

According to Mr. Niigaki, he has written over 20 songs for Samuragochi since 1996, receiving a grand total of 70,000 dollars for his work (seems like a 50/50 deal right?). He asserts that he has been guilt-stricken from the start, but every time he planned to go public with the truth, Mr. Samuragochi threatened to commit suicide.  Samuragochi, now has only expressed his deep regret towards the situation and “knows that he cannot possibly make any excuse for what he has done”. Most Japanese newspapers and magazines are heavily disappointed in this revelation and are also embarrassed at their inability to detect his fraudulence over the years.  As for the fate of the pretend Beethoven and his ghost writer, the world will just have to wait and watch.

All information gathered from: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/07/arts/music/renowned-japanese-composer-mamoru-samuragochi-admits-fraud.html?_r=0