People sometimes express surprise that I gave up a career in medicine for one in music. During tough times, I’ve occasionally questioned that decision myself. However, I recently learned from my father that there’s a precedent for a doctor of Korean heritage to throw him or herself into the dream of becoming a professional musician.

Music finds you even when you're not looking for it in New Orleans. My husband Tom and I decided to spend a few days in New Orleans before heading to my niece's graduation further north in Louisiana. We hadn't been to the Crescent City since before Hurricane Katrina, and we went without much of a plan, except to find a beignet and keep our ears open.

Today I had the great pleasure of playing some of Earl Wild’s stellar performances on the air, during my Saturday morning radio shift on WRTI-FM in Philadelphia. He was born in Pittsburgh 101 years ago this day.

Cellist Lynn Harrell plays with such ease, it’s as if the bow he holds in his right hand is a natural extension of his body. I’ve seen only two or three other artists play with this same degree of relaxed command. In a concert and masterclass he gave last fall at Haverford College, he revealed his secrets to that physical ease, and to his approach to music.

As social animals, we human beings can’t help our intense curiosity about other people. Faced with a member of the species who behaves outside the norm, we wonder, “How did so-and-so get that way?” This is especially true in the case of remarkable talent, and has led me to the subject for my next lecture-recital. Why does musical giftedness awaken in some people, and not in others who have, purportedly, the same DNA?

In celebration of her new CD of original compositions, I sat down to talk with my colleague Ingrid Arauco, who is a professor of music theory and composition at Haverford College, and whose work I often perform.