"Everything hurts," Ben-Dor told the paper from her hospital bed. "But my soul is happy because I'm alive."

The conductor was scheduled to lead the Santa Barbara Symphony's season-opening concerts on October 16 and 17. Lawrence Leighton Smith, her former boss at the Louisville Orchestra, will replace her on the podium.

Ben-Dor, the conductor emeritus of Boston's Pro-Arte Chamber Orchestra, completes her tenure in Santa Barbara this season. She has served as a guest conductor of the New York Philharmonic, London Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and other ensembles.