“My footsteps are not planning,” said Tomoko one day. She
was alluding to the fact that her life decisions are sometimes “of the moment.”
Rather, Tomoko’s seemingly serendipitous career path reveals the networks that
she has made throughout her life. The following story illustrates this process.
While touring in Japan, UCLA opera theater director Herbert
Jan Popper was impressed with Tomoko’s piano performance, and facilitated her
immigration to the States. Tomoko bought a one-way ticket when she left Japan
for the United States. There was no going back, even though she wasn’t sure
about her future.
Soon after she started studying at the San Francisco
Conservatory of Music, Tomoko heard about a Long Beach Music Teachers
Association competition. Tomoko took a bus to Long Beach, carrying her suitcase
to the competition. There she placed third. Someone gave her an envelope containing
$5, and one of the teachers took care of her night accommodations.
The next day, Tomoko took a bus from Long Beach to Santa
Barbara Academy to hear singer Lotte Lenya. At the concert, Tomoko sat by Rica
Savage, a local piano teacher, who invited Tomoko for dinner and drove her to
the bus. Rica also gave Tomoko her jacket, which she kept for twenty years.
Tomoko also kept in touch with this generous teacher until the woman’s death,
and afterwards continued that communication with Rica’s daughter Lesley. In 1980, Tomoko
returned the favor in that Lesley stayed in Tomoko’s house, and visited local
museums.
These “chance” encounters have turned into lifelong connections
throughout Tomoko’s career. Rather than a path, Tomoko’s life is a rich
network.
