Have you heard of the musical roads in Japan? In Japan, there are streets, highways, or roads that play a song as cars pass by. These roads are called “Melody Roads” [メロディーロード].
Just drive at the right speed, and the sound of the melody begins to vibrate directly from the tires into the car. It’s an experience that blends engineering, music, and a touch of Japanese magic. Let’s understand how this works — and where you can hear these melodies with your own ears.
The music is played as the car passes over a road with grooves in the ground, all without the use of technology. These grooves implanted in the asphalt create vibrations with the tires that actually produce the sound of the music.
These musical roads are found not only in Japan but also in Denmark, South Korea, the United States, Mexico, China, and San Marino. I want to take advantage of the article to list where you can also find these highways in other countries.
We also recommend reading:
- Hirajoshi Scale: the pentatonic scale of Japanese music
- Musical Instruments and Terms in Japanese
- Learning Japanese with music
Table of Contents
How did the music-playing streets come about?
The first musical road was made in Denmark, specifically in Gylling in 1995. It was created by two Danish artists who named it Asphaltophone; the music played on this stretch is an arpeggio in the F Major key.
In Japan, Shizuo Shinoda accidentally scratched some markings on a road with his tractor and realized that it was possible to create music depending on the depth and spacing of the grooves.
In 2007, the National Institute of Industrial Research in Hokkaido, which had already worked on a system using infrared and lights to detect dangerous roads, created the Melody Road using Shizuo Shinoda’s discovery.
The depth of the asphalt is 3mm-6mm of paving on the road surface, and the width is from 6 millimeters to 24 millimeters. It is recommended to drive at a speed of 40km to hear the music well; its speed will depend on your speed. A blogger also recommends passing over these roads with closed windows to hear the music better.
Where to find the melody roads?
In Japan, there are many Melody Roads; there are 6 just in Gunma. Let’s see in the table below:
| Province | City | Year | Segment (m) | Melody |
| Hokkaido | Shibetsu | 2004 | 565m | Shiretoko Ryojō |
| Hokkaido | Hokuto Murayama | 2015 | 250m | Akatonbo, red dragonfly |
| Hokkaido | Hokuto Murayama | 2015 | 317m | Īmondanafurusatoha |
| Hokkaido | Shibetsu | 2010 | 700m | musical road practical test |
| Fukushima | Onuma-gun Kanayama-cho | 2014 | 278m | Country Road |
| Nagano | Chino | 2008 | 210m | Scarborough Fair |
| Aichi | Toyota | 2007 | 301m | Dongurikorokoro |
| Shiga | Otsu | 2009 | 610m | Biwako shūkō no uta |
| Wakayama | Kimino-cho | 2007 | 320m | Miagetegoran’yorunohoshiwo |
| Okinawa | Nago | 2012 | 340m | Futami Jowa |
| Hiroshima | Sera-cho | 2009 | 513m | Totoro no sanpo |
| Gunma | Kusatsu | 300m | Kusatsu Onsen | |
| Gunma | Tsumagoi | 2010 | Snowy Mountain Song of Praise | |
| Gunma | Takasaki, Lake Haruna | 2008 | 280m | Quiet Lake |
| Gunma | Maebashi | 2010 | Tulip | |
| Gunma | Numata | Shirasawa | ||
| Hiroshima | Akitakata | 2014 | 270m | Kagura-demon segment |
| Ishikawa | Nanao – Anamizu | 2015 | 1200m | Maresora ~ rare Zola ~ |
| Oita | Taketa | 2007 | Kojo no Tsuki | |
| Ehime | Ikata | 2011 | 430m | Mikan’no hanasa kuoka |
The music-playing streets around the world
There are many other Melody Roads scattered around the world. In 2019, Hungary had its first musical road in memory of the death of Cipő (vocalist of the band Republic) on Road 67.
In Anyang, Gyeonggi in South Korea, Singing Roads were designed to help drivers stay alert and awake, as 68% of traffic accidents in South Korea are caused by inattentive and sleepy drivers.
In the Netherlands, a music track was removed because drivers were not passing at the appropriate and recommended speed, causing the music to play in a bad tone, disturbing the entire neighborhood, which ended the songs on the road.
The same happened in the USA on K Avenue in Lancaster, California. It seems that only the Japanese know how to appreciate classical music being played by car tires. How did these two countries succumb to neighborhood complaints?
Videos of streets playing music
To finish, let’s leave some videos showing the musical roads. I hope you enjoyed the article; if you did, share it and leave your comments. Have you had the chance to drive on one of these roads? I have driven on one in Gunma.
The first video shows how the roads make sound with different vehicles, including bicycles, skates, and wheelchairs. The other videos show some roads scattered throughout Japan.
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