I started skiing around the same time as I began playing the piano, at around four, before moving to the violin at five.

For example, I loved English and history at school. I would have loved to have done a degree in either. But my Mom said I didn't have time for university.

But I don't mind, I'm a bit of a touring animal. When I'm on tour that is the greatest thrill for me, playing to a live audience.

Beethoven and Beatles, Mozart and Michael Jackson, Paganini and Prince - I like them all.

In winter I go skiing on Saturdays and Sundays when the slopes are quieter due to changeover day for tourists, and in summer I hike up into the mountains at sunset, just as the village is settling down to dinner.

Violin playing is a physical art with great traditions behind it.

People find it hard to understand how I can risk ruining my career as a musician by injuring myself on the slopes, but I've always been a tomboy.