The year of 1866. In Japan, the end of the Edo era was approaching and the Meiji Restoration was just near. In central Europe, on the other hand, Prusso-Austrian War broke out and the Austrian Army was defeated. Injured soldiers were seen everywhere in Vienna, the capital of Austria Empire. The Austrian people was completely dispirited.
About that time, Johann Strauss II was asked to compose a waltz for chorus. Enthusiastic patriot, he must have thought to compose a melody which consoles and cheers the crushed Austrian people. Even if the nation is defeated in a war, the nature remains just as before. The "Blue Danube" was born the next year in such a situation.

The body begins to move spontaneously. This is the ultimate waltz!

Analyzing the melody of the famous waltz, Dr. Sternheimer says: "To dance waltz, smooth motion is important: relaxation and tension of muscles must be well coordinated.
So as to function muscles, calcium is inevitable. To our surprise, in the theme of the first waltz of the "Blue Danube", one finds melody pieces of four proteins which have relation with calcium. The four proteins are lactoglobulin, inositol trisphosphate receptor, voltage-gated calcium channel, and acetylcholine receptor. As can be seen from the attached partial score, the melody pieces are related in such a way that a melody piece is superposed at the end on the beginning of another and so on, then producing harmony.
The meaning of the composite melody can be known by examining the function of each protein: the melody works upon our body to relax first , then to prepare for dance, and finally to begin dance actually. This is a quite reasonable composition to tempt us naturally to dance. We may say, therefore, that the composite melody or the first waltz of the "Blue Danube" is really a representative melody for 'invitation to dance'".
It is difficult to believe that such harmonious superpositions of melody pieces are realized by chance. Surely no! "Such superpositions are a proof that 'scaling waves' are concerned in the coordination of the proteins.", says Dr. Sternheimer. Scaling waves, which are microscopic waves he has discovered, are produced notably during protein synthesis and have influence on the synthesis through a resonance phenomenon. The audible transposition of the waves also has similar effects. Thus the scaling waves would account for the usefulness of music to coordinate different proteins and also to help to coordinate smooth movement of different parts of ourselves.

The reason why the "Blue Danube" becomes an excellent piece of music in the history

Concerning the "Blue Danube", Brahms, a friend of Strauss II, wrote on a fan of a lady the opening several measures of the waltz, and underneath: Alas, not by Brahms. Dr. Sternheimer comments about this as follows: "All of us have potentially in ourselves the beginning of the melody. Nevertheless, what a surprise that essentials for coordination of movements of muscles are included in such short passages! This is the point of the waltz and, therefore, accounts for the fact that it became 'the most famous waltz in the history', as has been said. Brahms may have felt and understood the music to concern him deeply inside, reason why he wrote such a phrase".
People all over the world danced with elegant waltzes of Strauss II, the Waltz King. However, the greatest irony for him will be that he himself could not dance. About this, he confessed to a friend: "I have never been a dancer. How tempting the 'Invitation to dance' may be, I should absolutely say 'No' ".
Although he could not dance, he draws us smoothly into the movement of waltz with the "Blue Danube". In addition, although he was not a scientist, he unconsciously incorporated into the melody a hint to solve a hot theme which is the relation between inositol trisphosphate receptor and voltage-gated calcium channel and which puzzles biochemists of more than 100 years later!