Concert violinist plays his instrument during BRAIN SURGERY to help doctors locate the exact spot they needed to work on to stop his career-ending tremor

  • Roger Frisch, a concert master with the Minnesota Orchestra, was diagnosed in 2009 with essential tremors
  • The condition occurs when sections of the brain that control movement start sending abnormal signals
  • Frisch agreed to undergo experimental surgery which involved tiny electrodes being implanted into his brain
  • In order to determine if the electrodes were being positioned correctly, Frisch played his violin during the surgery in the Spring
  • A month after the operation he was performing again with the orchestra and can now control his tremor with the flick of a switch

A concert violinist diagnosed with a tremor was able to help surgeons locate the exact spot in his brain to place an implant by playing his instrument during the operation.

Roger Frisch, a concert master with the Minnesota Orchestra, was diagnosed in 2009 with essential tremors, a condition that occurs when sections of the brain that control movement start sending abnormal signals.

Frisch’s condition was so mild that in many other line of work he might have been able to ignore it, but as a concert violinist it threatened his career.

Scroll down for video

Roger Frisch, a concert master with the Minnesota Orchestra, was diagnosed in 2009 with essential tremors, a condition that occurs when sections of the brain that control movement start sending abnormal signals

Roger Frisch, a concert master with the Minnesota Orchestra, was diagnosed in 2009 with essential tremors, a condition that occurs when sections of the brain that control movement start sending abnormal signals

Frisch underwent the operation in the Spring and since then has returned to his position as Associate Concertmaster with the Minnesota Orchestra

Frisch underwent the operation in the Spring and since then has returned to his position as Associate Concertmaster with the Minnesota Orchestra

It took doctors a couple of years to determine Frisch's diagnosis and then or him to agree to the still experimental Deep Brain Stimulation procedure surgery.

The surgery involved a tiny electrode being implanted into his brain, which doctors assured Frisch would enable him to control the condition at the flick of a switch.

In order for the electrode to work, it had to be implanted in exactly the right position, reports EverydayHealth.

Because surgeons can operate on the brain without the patient feeling pain, it enables them to see in real time if and how the tremor is responding as they place the electrode.

Frisch's tremor was so mild that in many other lines of work he might have been able to ignore it, but as a concert violinist it threatened his career

Frisch's tremor was so mild that in many other lines of work he might have been able to ignore it, but as a concert violinist it threatened his career

Frisch now carries a device which allows him to turn his tremor off and on with the push of a button that controls the stimulator

Frisch now carries a device which allows him to turn his tremor off and on with the push of a button that controls the stimulator

Frisch’s tremor was so mild, however, that his surgeon was worried he would not be able to tell whether the electrode had been properly placed.

Doctors then came up with the ingenious idea of using Frisch's violin bow to help determine where his tremor was.

An accelerometer was place on the end of Frisch’s bow which translated his tremor into a graph on a computer screen that surgeons could watch. So while surgeons fitted the electrodes, he played his violin.

Frisch underwent the operation in the Spring and since then he has resumed his position as Associate Concertmaster with the Minnesota Orchestra.

He now carries a small device which allows him to turn his tremor off and on with the push of a button that controls the stimulator.

Three weeks after brain surgery he was able to play in a full-length sextet performance and a week after that he was performing again with the orchestra.

He told String Visions that the tremor is now 'nonexistent.'

Video: Violinists plays on during brain surgery