 She was born in Sydney, Australia but grew up in Canada after the age of four.Her diplomas in music education and performance were completed at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Ontario.She also completed a Bachelor of Commerce (marketing) degree at the University of Calgary (1985), a Bachelor of Music degree at the University of Toronto (1991), a master's degree at McGill University in Montreal (1995), and a doctorate from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles (2001), where she received the outstanding DMA in Composition award.