Adolph Baller, Yehudi Menuhin, and Tomoko

           Tomoko personally knew Adolph Baller and Yehudi Menuhin, who exemplify different approaches to early talent. As a piano teacher, Tomoko does not like the idea of child proteges; “They may have technical skill, but not the experience.” She also feels for the child; “They are controlled by adults who are focusing on money, and they throw out the child when he is burned out.”  

Adolph Baller was born July 30, 1909 in Brody (now in western Ukraine). At age eight he was sent to Vienna to study the piano, and he debuted with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra at age thirteen. In 1938 the Nazis beat him up because he was a Jew, and crushed his hands when they realized that he was a pianist. He and his fiancee escaped to Budapest, and immigrated to the States. His hands healed, and he restarted his performance career, included forming the Alma Trio with Gabor Rejto and Roman Totenberg, and teaching at Stanford, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Dominican College. 

Yehudi Menuhin was born April 22, 1916 in New York City. He started violin instruction at age four, and was a solo violinst with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra at age seven. He played in Carnegie Hall at age 11, and had his first concerto recording at age 15, in London. As a young adult he seemed to stall in his musical growth, being protected from everyday life. That changed. 

In the early years of World War II Baller played for a New York radio station, where he met Menuhin. Together they performed for U.S. troops around the world, including in the Aleutian Islands. Experiencing the life of men his age and younger in army bases opened his world, and gave him more self-assurance.  

The two Jewish musicians continue to tour together after the war, and Tomoko met them when she studied with Adolph Baller at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Baller was impressed with her playing, and asked if she would serve as a page-turner for his own performance; there she also met Menuhin. Not only did Tomoko have the opportunity to see the back stage of world-reknown performers, but she was able to earn money as a page-turner to help pay for her own studies at the Conservatory. And her experiences with these two grand names in music informed her own piano teaching.

Tomoko's Musical World of Vienna

Tomoko has traveled several times to Europe, and one of her special cities is Vienna. No wonder – with its musical history. For instance, Tomoko visited Beethoven’s house in Vienna, which was made into a museum. 

Vienna is sometimes called the capital of classical music, largely because it was the hub of 19^th century musical composition and performance. Music was a booming industry then, attracting such luminaries as Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Strauss, and Berg. 

Several of Tomoko's favorite composers, teachers and performers were connected with Vienna.

Mozart spent much of his life in Vienna, starting with an invitation for him to play a concert at the Habsburg family Schonbrunn Palace.

German composer Ludwig van Beethoven. He lived several years in Vienna, and was largely influenced by the Viennese classical tradition of Mozart and Haydn. 

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius fantasized studying in Vienna under Brahms or Bruckner. Both of them rejected Sibelius, but he was able to study informally in Vienna and networked with musicians in the city. Sibelius wrote to his family: “Vienna is all laughter and waltzes.”

Tomoko studied under Adolph Baller, and she earned money as a page-turner for him when she was a student at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Baller was sent at age eight to Vienna to study the piano; he debuted with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra at age thirteen.

One of Tomoko’s earliest musical inspirations was pianist Lili Kraus. Tomoko collected her LPs as a youngster, and crossed paths with Lili several times. In her early career, Lili was a professional performer and professor at the Vienna Academy. She also met and married Austrian philosopher Otto Mandl in Vienna.

Vienna continues to hum with music, offering a wide range of music: from classical to progressive jazz and rock concerts. Although Tomoko doesn’t travel abroad much now, her mental memories of Vienna still roam in her mind.

A Short History of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music

The San Francisco Conservatory of Music is known as one of the top music conservatories in the United States. Tomoko studied there, and has been teaching there ever since she graduated from the conservatory.  This year the San Francisco Conservatory of Music celebrating its one hundredth year.  And what a history it is.

The conservatory started as the Ada Clement Piano School in a remodelled home at 3435 Sacramento Street near the Presidio in San Francisco. In only six years the school became incorporated as the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and expanded its curriculum to include orchestral instruments, voice, theory, and composition. After World War II faculty chamber ensembles became more reknown. The Griller Quarter offered summer courses, and the Alma Trio offered a summer residence program. Tomoko studied with the Almo Trio's pianist Adolph Baller.

In 1956 the conservatory moved to 1201 Ortega Street in San Francisco’s Sunset area. The conservatory  was a single story Mission-style building with a lovely landscaped courtyard. Furthering its reputation, the conservatory was the first West Coast music school to be regionally and nationally accredited. It was during that Tomoko that made her first mark. 

By the 21^st century the conservatory had again outgrown its facility, not only because of its curriculum but also because of its festivals and special concerts. In addition, the conversatory wanted to be located closer to the cultural part of the city. Therefore, they relocated to the present site at 50 Oak Street, which includes three state-of-the-art performance spaces. Tomoko’s teaching studio there has two grand pianos, and she has donated personal artifacts to their archive collection. As for the Ortega building, it became the facility for the Alliance Francaise School.

Throughout the conservatory’s existence it has provided a rigorous learning environment – and the start for hundreds of musicians in spirit and performance.

Baller, Menuhin and Tomoko

Tomoko personally knew Adolph Baller and Yehudi Menuhin, who exemplify different approaches to early talent. As a piano teacher, Tomoko does not like the idea of child proteges; “They may have technical skill, but not the experience.” She also feels for the child; “They are controlled by adults who are focusing on money, and they throw out the child when he is burned out.”

Adolph Baller was born July 30, 1909, in Brody (now in western Ukraine). At age eight he was sent to Vienna to study the piano, and he debuted with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra at age thirteen. In 1938 the Nazis beat him up because he was a Jew, and crushed his hands when they realized that he was a pianist. He and his fiancee escaped to Budapest, and immigrated to the States. His hands healed, and he restarted his performance career, included forming the Alma Trio with Gabor Rejto and Roman Totenberg. He also taught at Stanford, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Dominican College.

               Yehudi Menuhin was born April 22, 1916, in New York City. He started violin instruction at age four, and was a solo violinist with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra at age seven. He played in Carnegie Hall at age 11, and had his first concerto recording at age 15, in London. As a young adult he seemed to stall in his musical growth, being protected from everyday life. That changed.

               In the early years of World War II Baller played for a New York radio station, where he met Menuhin. Together they performed for U.S. troops around the world, including in the Aleutian Islands. Experiencing the life of men his age and younger in army bases opened Menuhin's world, and gave him more self-assurance.

The two Jewish musicians continued to tour together after the war, and Tomoko met them when she studied with Adolph Baller at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Baller was impressed with her playing, and asked if she would serve as a page-turner for his own performance; there she also met Menuhin. Not only did Tomoko have the opportunity to see the back stage of world-reknown performers, but she was able to earn money as a page-turner to help pay for her own studies at the Conservatory. And her experiences with these two grand names in music informed her own piano teaching.