When Tomoko was performing competitively in the 1960s,
spring seemed to be a favored time.
In
late March of 1985, the Philharmonic Orchestra and the Junior League of Fresno
held a Young Artists competition, at which Tomoko won as the best pianist,
garnering a $500 prize. At the winners’ concert in the town’s Roosevelt High
School auditorium, Tomoko played her praiseworthy Mozart
concerto. The other performing winners were baritone David
Tenbrook,
who later sang in west coast operas,
and violinist Varoujan Kodjian, who became a
conductor in the states and in Europe.
Later that spring Tomoko had her Peninsula debut at Foothill College in its Appreciation Hall. At this evening event, sponsored by the Santa Clara Japanese Speaking Society of America, she again performed a full program, which would largely overlap her post-graduation recital: a mix of Mozart, Brahms, Chopin and Schumann. A year later, in 1966, Tomoko again played under the sponsorship of the Santa Clara Japanese Speaking Society of America, this time at Mountain View High School in a piano and violin duo with Jack Ullom. The composers were again Mozart and Brahms, with Bartók added, but the pieces were naturally composed for two. And Tomoko wowwed the audience with her Mozart rondo encore. The press agreed: “The delicacy and precision of her runs and trills made this a particlar delight. A beautiful figure in yellow silk, she played with the greatest composure.”
Even though Tomoko enjoyed performing in California live and in
broadcasts, she yearned to perform in Europe. Tomoko had the chance to fly to Europe in spring of 1967 for the Long-Thibaud International Piano Competition in Paris, which promoted classical music. This biennial contest was created in 1943, in the midst of World War II. Just a year before Tomoko participated in the competition, founder pianist Marguerite Long passed away. “I feel a little guilty having such a good time here, even though the contest has an undertone of
sadness,” Tomoko recalls.
Tomoko ended up flying to the Continent the next
spring for her most memorable international competition: the 1968 Queen
Elizabeth International Piano Competition. Tomoko had
to spend months ahead of time learning the required composition written for the competition and another piece by a Belgian composer as well as practice
her own technique. As with other contestants, Tomoko had to pay her own expenses,
but was housed by local arts enthusiasts. Even
during the competition, the pianists practiced and conversed with each other;
they were in it together, especially as they had to perform with the same
orchestra and conductor. The competition was a city-wide event for Brussels,
with journalists and photographers avidly following the musicians throughout
the three rounds of competition, with the final round being broadcast on radio and television. When asked why she did
such competitions, Tomoko replied, “Humans need competition. Pressure
transforms to energy.” She continued, “Enjoy life with its challenges – then
succeed.”
