Tomoko’s Christmas Memories

 

As Tomoko demonstrates, Christmas certainly builds lifelong musical memories.

Tomoko attended Ferris Academy: an elite Dutch Reformed school for girls, located in Yokohama. “At Christmas time everyone memorized Bible verses and performed Christmas music,” Tomoko remembers.  

She also recalls: “The Dutch Reformed school received Christmas cards from the U.S., and the images showed a very rich and full Christmas. The teachers would cut the cards with zigzag scissors, and sell them at the school Christmas bazaar (an American tradition brought to the school). In Japan at that time, every scrap of paper was dear, so the cards were very popular. “

When Tomoko attended the Conservatory of San Francisco, she spent the Christmas break with her classmate. Tomoko remembers dressing in a pale flowered kimono, and playing a board game at her friend’s home.

Tomoko’s musical memory of Christmas also extends to her daughter Beata’s ’s piano playing. The little girl was  frantic one evening, when she told her mother, “Mummy, the school Christmas program is tomorrow, and I have to play “Up on the Housetop! I told the teacher that I couldn’t do it, and she said that you would help. Help! What am I going to do??” Tomoko thought to herself: “That’s too much pressure for a little girl.” To Beata, though, she said calmly, “Let’s go to the piano.” Tomoko sat down beside her. “Don’t worry. The most important thing is the rhythm. Now play middle G, and sing the song, tapping the key for each note.” Tomoko listened and observed closely, and gave Beata some encouraging suggestions. Beata practiced for the next half hour, with Tomoko’s gradual release of coaching. The next day, Tomoko asked Beata, “How did the program go?” Beata smiled, “The teacher didn’t even notice that it was just one note!” Tomoko wasn’t surprised, and hugged her daughter.

As a teacher, Tomoko advised parents: "Your actions speak volumes. And your musical investment of time can bring untold value to your children. You can share Christmas carols as a way to share your love of music with your children. You and your children can grow together through music.”

Tomoko also sees Christmas as a universal musical experience. Tomoko sees the importance of experiencing music through the lens of a country, and comparing those different expressions. She suggests: “Compare Christmas songs from different countries. They are a way to connect with culture.”

 

Harmony in Life

“Harmony is important,” asserts Tomoko. It is certainly a core sensibility in her life.

Tomoko remembers taking music theory when in secondary school, which included harmony. She and her classmates would sing in harmony in front of the classroom. The girls would perform in duets and quartets, personifying the core of musical harmony.

In turn, Tomoko weaves in music theory in her piano lessons. She says, “At the beginning, the child needs to learn the basics, like arithmetic tables.” She points out the importance of understanding a composition’s structure and patterns, just like mathematics. “And we strive for harmony.”

Tomoko also notes the link between harmony and mathematics. Both require precision and order. Both deal with proportion and use pattern creatively. Music is very measured, and mathematics has a certain rhythm. Einstein, who played the violin for his own pleasure, loved Mozart because of the composer’s expression of universal harmony,

Tomoko says of harmony: “There is something creative about harmony: it is stimulating.” Tomoko continues, “Art is supposed to have a sense of a group; it is communication.”

When people are in harmony with music, they are at peace and yet energized.  Tomoko talks about culture’s impact on music. “I have a student from India. Each country has a traditional music. The people in each country meet for a unique reason. During their gatherings a special harmony is produced, and even the way to perform that ritual music is unique.”

The saying “to make beautiful music together” is a sure sign of harmony, a sign that should be heard around the world.

The Richness of Cultural Interaction

Tomoko has appreciated the diverse cultures and backgrounds of her students, to some degree because of her own experience. She enjoyed performances by foreign musicians, and as a student in Japan, she had both Japanese and non-Japanese teachers.

Tomoko was the first Asian teacher at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, so knew how it felt to be culturally different from many of her colleagues. And she accepted the first Black student of the Conservatory. Throughout the years, she has continued to teach a wide variety of students. Here are a few examples.

Christina Igoa  came from a Muslim family. She was born in the Philippines, and her father was the President of Philippine Airlines. Tomoko has known her for almost twenty years, and is proud of Dr. Igoa's accomplishments in life, including her work on the UN 2013 Commission on the Status of Women.

Another one of her students came from the area of Yugoslavia that became Croatia. Tomoko encouraged her singing when the girl was a piano student of Tomoko, and she became a professional singer.

One of Tomoko's long-time students, Vivian, lived with her family in Vietnam. Her father was a young tutor of wealthy children. One rainy day on his way home from tutoring, he stopped and stood under his umbrella, inspired as he listened to someone playing Chopin. At that moment, he thought to himself: "If I have a daughter, she must study piano."Indeed, he fathered Vivian, and she studies piano -- with Tomoko. "Vivian performs Chopin, Liszt, and Beethoven beautifully," says Tomoko. She continues, "Both her children studied piano with me throughout their childhood. So that moment of rain led to at least two generations of pianists, and most likely more."

Another student, Rowan, was born in Australia, and his mother was born in Kenya. He started at age 7, and hated the piano. But he joined the San Francisco boys' chorus, and learned the importance of reading and play music. Tomoko remarks, "Who know where experience leads. It is not good to stop possibilities."

That sense of surprising success is exemplified in Tomoko's student Brai, who is Chinese. He is small, and was benched in footfall.  He learned not only how to play the piano, but also to gain the discipline and perseverance to succeed academically, as illustrated by his acceptance into Harvard.

What do Tomoko's students of these different cultures say of her?  Tomoko's daughter Beata hears those students, and remembers them saying, "We love your mom so much. She is the best. She works so hard. She teachers with her heart." Beata concludes, "They are to grateful."

The interaction of cultures can enrich everyone's lives. Music facilitates that interaction: both between the performer and the composer -- and, in Tomoko's case, between student and teacher.

Cultural legacy

What kind of cultural legacy is Tomoko building? Just ask one of her former students: Bora Kim --

After completing my graduate studies, I was faced with the ‘real’ conditions of the job market and the looming concerns of pursuing a career. Having nurtured an appreciation for the arts at a young age, I knew that life goals should foremost be driven by one’s passion. If one thing was certain, I wanted to be surrounded by the arts, to be sustained by the creative energies and output of others and myself that shared this singular passion for the arts. Furthermore, if my passion could benefit the society somehow, I knew that it could be something that I could devote my life to.

My work at the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council enacts this selfsame vision by bringing art and culture to the New York metropolis, more specifically in the heart of the corporate-dominated Financial District. Our goals are to continually humanize the Lower Manhattan area, to bring art and culture where it is lacking most. In working with artists of various backgrounds and disciplines—visual artists, performing artists, musicians, and writers for example—I have come to witness the beautiful impact that the Arts can have in New York’s otherwise forbiddingly corporate environs.

 
            Of course, this realization and subsequent motivation were far from innate. They came from years of my own personal devotion to the study of Classical music. If it weren’t for the difficult years of training and what it meant to pour passion into an art form, I would not be able to muster the hard work and dedication into what I do. The teachings and contributions of Tomoko Hagiwara inevitably factor into this, and I consider myself most fortunate to have taken part in her tutelage and guidance. Without her influence, I would not have experienced the transformative aspects of the arts. Classical music, like other art forms, is so fundamentally infused with the human spirit and emotion that it would be inconceivable without passion. It is solely after having tasted what minimal challenges I personally faced in my Classical training and their monumental outcomes, that I can genuflect to the beauty and the necessity of the arts, for the good of our community and society, and most deeply within ourselves.

The Culture of Music

Continuing the spirit of countries, as reflected in the conversation about Independence day, Tomoko talks about culture’s impact on music. “I have a student from India. Each country has a traditional music. The people in each country meet for a unique reason. During their gatherings a special harmony is produced, and even the way to perform that ritual music is unique.” Tomoko then relates that national or cultural experience to art. You can imagine a museum in that country. Its art reflects the county’s geography, its lifestyles, its artistic sensibilities. So when you listen to the sound of a country, you are one step closer to its art. Both of these creative expressions reflect the country.”

Tomoko sees the importance of experiencing music through the lens of a country, and comparing those different expressions. She suggests: “Compare Christmas songs from different countries. They are a way to connect with culture.”

Tomoko relates some of her own musical experiences as she has traveled in different countries. “In a Korea donut shop you might hear cello sonata music. In Korea you find good singing performance. Koreans see singing as a discipline. In Japan they have high-class music. The rules of music are very important, just as the direction of kimono is important. In Japan people are not supposed to show their emotions; their expressions are like a mask. Similarly, their approach to music is more technical rather than emotional.”

Tomoko then compares how people relate to music in France. “In France each person has a chance to shine, to be individual. Musicians ask: Why should I perform music the same way as another person?” Tomoko perceives another attitude in German music. “The Germans have a proverb: The weed is stronger than the flower. The weak, the fragile, have to do more than show up when playing music; they cannot stay in their safe zone. Instead, German performers know that they have to practice repeatedly; constant discipline is needed. They are never satisfied until they are strong, overcoming any musical challenges.”

You can hear the feelings of the country in Tomoko’s performance of several piano pieces that were inspired by traditional melodies such as Chopin's Polanaise a A flat major and Glinka's Masurkas. Enjoy them on the Touria album, available at https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/tomokohagiwara13.