Musician Plays Violin as Surgeons Operate on His Brain

Roger Frisch of Plymouth, Minn., lay on the operating table with his hands clutching his violin to his chin. While surgeons operated on Frisch’s brain, Frisch began to play the chords he’s known for more than 30 years. It seemed like a scene from a science fiction movie. But every note he played told the surgeons whether the electronic pulses they were sending to his brain worked to ease his body’s tremors.