Picker originally met Oliver Sacks at a dinner party.[10] Picker, whose Tourette's syndrome went undiagnosed until he was in his thirties, was interested in Sacks's opinion of his symptoms.[11][12] Soon becoming close friends, Picker and Sacks served as mutual inspirations for one another: Picker was interested in Sacks's intellect and compassion, while Sacks was fascinated by Picker's creativity, Tourette's, and musicianship.[13] Picker would become one of the subjects of Sack’s book Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain:
Tobias Picker, the distinguished composer, also has Tourette’s. but when he is composing or playing the piano or conducting, his tics disappear. I have watched him as he sits almost motionless for hours, orchestrating one of his études for piano at his computer… Picker writes in every mode—the dreamy and tranquil no less than the violent and stormy—and moves from one mood to another with consummate ease.[14]
^Goode, Erica (June 2, 2016). "Oliver Sacks Tribute Captures His Quirks and Insights". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2022. 'He was very helpful to me because he could talk about it, talk about what he was observing, in a way that made me understand how I was being observed by the outside world,' Mr. Picker said.