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Tell me a little bit about your background. I'm from Estonia, bet ween Finland and Russia. It is the crossroads of East and West, a ver y interesting place that hasn't had the lu x ur y of being f ree for more than a couple of decades. We have a ver y keen music tradition in Estonia, so it is actually quite natural for an Estonian to become a musician. In my case, my mother saw right away that my twin sister and I were a lile bit like—my mom would say "airheads." I would use a different term: creative. A nd people who have twins know that we tend to create our own lile bubble. I' ll tell you honestly, I don't see what's wrong with that, I still would create my own bubble if I could. My mom also saw that we were musically talented, so she put us in a music school at a good time. I think this saved me because if you do something throughout your life, something that's in your system and you maintain your goals and go through the bad times, then you' ll make it. I wanted to become a musician as a child. I played piano since I was si x, but I thought, how am I going to be able to sit in a classroom and practice all the time? I wanted to meet people and learn languages. I loved other cultures and wanted to travel. I wondered, how can I do that if I have to practice my piano? When did you decide that you wanted to move into the conducting and directing role, rather than being a musician? I didn't; life decided it for me. Oen if you wait long enough, that is what happens. Somebody famous once said, when asked what he would suggest to young people pick ing a musical career, aer all the As a world-renowned conductor, Anu Tali strikes a harmonious balance between her demanding career and private life. Despite her hectic travel schedule, we recently had the opportunity to sit down with Ms. Tali, the music director for the Sarasota Orchestra, to discuss her impressive career, philosophies about life and her goal to not always make too many plans for the future. A traditional "Be yourself " adv ice, he would say, "Do it only if you can't live w ithout it." A nd I agree. If you can't do other w ise, then do. But it's not only about mak ing music, it's about any thing. en you have the right passion for it. One of my professors taught me that you shouldn't grow yourself a crow n; instead, keep yourself on Ear th. Then you w il l never be blinded by the fame instead of the music. You must appreciate other people. When you have been given a leading position, you have to step together w ith the people you work w ith. If you don't notice them, if you don't hear how they play, or hear what they suggest, then you're going to be ver y lonely, and I don't think you w il l be able to achieve much. What is it like to be one of the few females in your industry to have risen to this level? I had nothing to compare to. I've only lived my life and took it as it was given to me. When you're more ex perienced, then you're not as crazy about achiev ing your dreams. But when you stop dreaming , that's when you become an adult, and I am not intending to become one. When I was in Sw itzerland for the famous Lucerne Festival w ith the Chamber Photo by Kaupo Kikkas 54 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com

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