I had been playing since I was 2 years old, never remembering a life without music, always playing everything naturally and mostly by ear, and all the grownups wanted were more scales and drudgery out of me.

For many years, the government of Canada has massively supported orchestras and the arts in general.

A good example of how it must have been is today's world of conducting, which is still utterly dominated by men, and the prejudice the few female conductors have to battle even today is astounding.

There are no benefactors in Canada because there is no incentive.

I see no reason to hide who I am or what I look like.

Music is art, art is life, and we are who we are, and all of these aforementioned women, unless they should choose not to, will be performing well into the next many decades because they are great artists.

When you arrive at your destination, pay absolutely no attention to the thing people call jetlag.