Photographer Gun Roze Asked Each Of His Portrait Subjects What Music They Really Loved.

1- Mikela (Actress) – 1984 Soundtrack ~ Eurythmics

“The era it came out I was beginning to come into my own. It was the first time I fully understood the blend of vocal + musical performance woven with narrative structure. Also, Annie.”

 

2- Bryony (Dancer) – My favorite song is Life on Mars – David Bowie.

“It feels like David Bowie wrote this for me, that I am the girl with the mousy hair. The song makes me feel reassured and seen. I can feel into a timeless and safe place where I am allowed to be myself. The song expresses a lot about all the issues in the world, and wonders how to find escape from this planet. I can relate to this, sometimes I want to get away from this world.”

3- Felix (Student) – “One of my all time favorites is “Amphetamine” by Smino. This song has been with me through thick and thin – it’s truly a remedy for the soul.”

4- William (Curator) –

“Without a doubt, my all-time favourite song is the instrumental theme by Hoyt Curtin for a 60s animated series entitled The Adventures of Jonny Quest, which has been a favourite cartoon of mine since boyhood. The track is bizarrely orchestral for a kids show and certainly of the era, it’s fast-paced, and like the titular character, complex. The song always triggers my nostalgia for the series, which I always thought would be such an exciting life of exotic travel and mystery solving. Currently as an arts administrator, I’m certainly not a youthful prodigy pursuing global adventures; but with the theme song as continued inspiration, maybe there’s still hope!”

5- Gabriel (Manual Osteopath) –

“For my favourite album: Tough to choose, but I have to say Ambient Collection by RAURA, a Japanese crystal singing bowl artist. In this album the healing sounds of the crystal singing bowls are elegantly and expertly crafted with electronic ambient soundscapes to create a highly evocative deep-dive into stillness. I’ve used this album extensively during my Craniosacral Therapy sessions as I found the album to be supremely facilitative in transporting both my client and myself into a deeper and more profound space. A real treasure!”

6- Sarah (Artist) –

“So after some careful thought I have to say I think my favourite Album is Joni Mitchell’s Court and Spark. It came out when I was 14. I was in grade 9. It was the first album I bought with my own money and I already was a huge fan of Joni. I loved the art work on the cover and as an aspiring artist, who worked in water colour at the time I found her painting on the cover, imaginative, evocative, charming and quirky. I loved that she was a painter and a singer. I, too, loved music and art. She has continued to be an inspiration to me throughout my lifetime.”

7- Sully (Dancer) -“Lover’s Rock – Sade

This song holds quite a special place in my heart, having beautifully nostalgic memories attached to it. It’s such a great song to relax to; it’s been a constant in my life throughout my evolving tastes and interests in music. I’m obsessed with the smooth and simple melodies of her voice, the lyrics that roll off the tongue, the bass just echoes in my heart, it is so groovy and understated and oozes sensuality…it warms my heart. In my dream, I listen to this song (with some really good headphones or speakers, to get the full experience) while the plane takes off into the sky, the sun setting, life being easy.”

8- Lucas (Musician) –

“My favourite song is always the one that’s currently catching my ear. I’m reading Sylive Simmons’ biography on Leonard Cohen at the moment and revisiting his entire catalogue. It’s day to day, but I’ll go with ‘A Thousand Kisses Deep’ from his album Ten New Songs (2001). A timeless cool masterpiece.”

10- Cleave (Musician) –

“My favourite song is Nothin’ by the Ugly Ducklings, recorded in Toronto in 1966… cuz…. I saw/heard them at my High School when I was 14 or 15 years old. It was then I knew what I wanted to do. I bought some drum sticks the next day. Even though I didn’t have much talent for it I’ve never given up trying and have had a ton of fun in the process.”

 

11- Mandy (Actress) -Closer, Goapele 

“There is nothing rushed about this song. The lyrics and the musical composition are about surrender, and, even though I’ve loved this song forever, the older I get, the more it resonates. I realize the only way to get high, to get closer to my dreams, is to surrender to the present moment. I remember living in a south facing apartment in the st lawrence market area of toronto and hearing those opening notes drift up from the rooftop bar at Guvernment. It was a quintessential Toronto moment for me. The type of music that united me with so many souls in the city growing up as a club kid – the music that elevated us, was literally floating in the sky. Even though no one was with me in that moment, the groove was proof that I am never alone.”

12- Fyodor (Composer) –

“Favorite music album has to be End of an Empire by Celldweller; back in the winter of 2015 when I was method acting as a research assistant in the Donnelly Centre at U of T, transitioning into working as a security guard, and leaving my sketchy sign holder job all at the same time the album released and it freaked me out that Circle of Dust was coming back after a nearly 20 year long hiatus – I was listening to the album over and over watching an artist get their rights back and witnessing a resurrection while releasing 3 different albums in one year, which was insane for me at the time.”