Chinese-Californian by upbringing, I grew up singing “Rainbow Connection” in hippy Berkeley, crossed the continent to study English literature at Harvard, then took this degree to its clearest practical end: namely 20 years and counting of life in Germany and The Netherlands as a classical cellist. I’ve been a member of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra since 2010, and having a young child – my son is now 3 – has just intensified my desire to look into roots and traditions to solve that age-old question: “Sinterklaas, Santa Claus, or just call the whole thing off and enjoy more soy-sauce fried chicken?”