PEOPLE MAY ASK WHY DONNA IS SO INTO CLASSICAL MUSIC AT 15, AND THE REASON MAY BE SIMILAR TO JUILLIARD PRODIGY YO YO MA’S: SHE JUST IS

exasperated. Ditto for Puccini’s O mio babbino caro , which elicits an exhausted, “Just. Shut up.”

Time To Play

If she’s not practising the violin, Donna’s busy with her flying lessons (she’s learning the theory) and hanging out with friends. Favourite flicks include The Hunger Games trilogy, Mean Girls and, duh, Amadeus . “I love classical music conspiracy theories,” she says with a cheeky grin.

Donna also took some much-needed time to do normal teenaged girl things over the holidays, travelling to Toronto and New York to see friends and family, and take in a couple of concerts, one by a personal idol. Naturally the concerts were a pair of operas at The Met, one being Rigoletto featuring Lisette Oropesa. Now it’s back to focusing on Juilliard. Who knows? Maybe one day Donna will be one of the world’s great classical music educators. “I would love classical music to be enjoyed by more people, and be more mainstream. I’m not saying pop is bad, but people just don’t know enough. All Western music is influenced by the composers we were talking about, even if you don’t realise it,” she finishes. With one little jab. “Even The Beatles.” Take that, pop music.