Darya Farha

I debated what I should call myself here. "Dabbler"? Not right for someone like me, who falls madly and passionately in loves with pieces, and listens to them nonstop for a week at a time.

"Novice Listener"? Being 42, the idea of "novice" didn't feel right either.

So eventually I settled on "Listener", although something like "ambulatory sound receptor" might be more appropriate. If something touches me, strikes me, wherever I am or in whatever genre, I seek it out.

Most of the pieces I love I discovered by accident. Walking into a shop (art stores staffed by art students tend to be the best for that), at dance performances, by listening to the radio and frantically thinking "What is that? Who is that? I have to find that music!"

I played violin as a child but was bad. Very bad. I think I was just too nervous and self-conscious then to get into it. A badly broken arm and shoulder put me out of my misery.

I fought hard to play the violin, as piano was the intrument du jour in our house. And then when I got my instrument I discovered that it hadn't been the violin I'd been longing for but the cello, with its deeper sound.

The cello is such a wonderful instrument for expressing sadness but also acceptance and presence, and I think that's why it's one of favorites still. Whatever crazy state of mind I'm in, the cello brings me back.

In spite of having defected to strings, piano remains one of my favorites, perhaps because of its visceral quality. Listening to the piano, for me, is a total body experience. Brendel is one of my favorites, as is, of course, Glenn Gould, who is a big hero here in Canada. After many listenings, his Goldberg Variations still seems like a marvel and a revelation to me.

My appreciation for violin has grown over the years, especially with the help of Maxim Vengerov. While certainly no expert, I can always tell when it's him playing on the radio because of the special liquid quality of his playing. There's no one else like him.

Celtic violin has also always been a somewhat secret pleasure of mine. I like the rhythm, the spontaneity, the joyfulness, the way it makes you dance. When I was a child I used to watch a show called "The Irish Rovers" and one night my mother found me in the hallway "sleepdancing" their Irish jigs.

Experimental by nature, I also enjoy work that incorporates old and new, that is innovative and exciting. There's an excellent band here in Toronto called The Hidden Cameras, and while you can tell a lot of them have been classically trained, their sound is fresh and unique. Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) is another such Toronto musician who's really worth a listen.