Brave Violinist Plays Violin During Brain Surgery

"We knew how important the violin is to Dagmar, so it was vital that we preserved function in the delicate areas of her brain that allowed her to play," said her neurosurgeon, Keymoumars Ashkan. "We managed to remove over 90% of the tumor, including all the areas suspicious of aggressive activity, while retaining full function in her left hand."

Turner plays in the Isle of Wight Symphony Orchestra and several choral societies and left the hospital three days later. She hopes to rejoin her orchestra shortly, and praised Ashkan, who also loves music.

"The thought of losing my ability to play was heart-breaking but, being a musician himself, Professor Ashkan understood my concerns," she said to Time. "He and the team at King's went out of their way to plan the operation — from mapping my brain to planning the position I needed to be in to play."

The brain surgery violinists have a canon

Believe it or not, this has happened before. In 2014, professional violinist Roger Frisch played his violin during brain surgery, according to a CNET report. His surgeons — at the Mayo Clinic Neural Engineering Lab — worked to implant a brain pacemaker, in hopes of steadying Frisch's hand tremors.

The implant is normally used to treat diseases like Parkinson's, major depression, Tourette syndrome, tremors, and chronic pain. The surgery was a success, and Frisch played with the Minnesota Orchestra three short weeks later.

Whether it's to save musical gifts or restore them, playing the violin during brain surgery is a sobering reminder of just how magnificent the brain is — and, by implication — our rapidly-advancing medical ability to preserve it.