I grew up in Budapest, Hungary. American music was a rare, rare thing to me back then. My parents owned maybe 5 records, yet I still think ours was a musical family. My mother loved singing Russian folk and national songs to us. I admired her strong, clear voice and just the sheer number of songs she knew. My family moved to Ithaca in 1985. I bought my first instrument at 25, my second at 33. I play bass in The Witching. It is the first time I can share with others the beats and melodies I've been hearing in my head.

When I go to a concert, I like to be way up close to the performer. To watch the performer uninhibitedly, and to surrender to complete voyeurism is the most exciting part of a live concert for me. This is the "third-row" experience... The first time I discovered it, was during a play ("The Inspector General" by Gogol). I had tickets for the third row.

What row do you like to take?

Jimi Hendrix Live in the Oakland Colisseum 1969
Led Zeppelin "Physical Graffiti"
Pixies (Live)
PereUbu "Terminal Tower - An Archival Collection"
Johnny Dowd "Wrong Side Memphis"
Marta Sebestyen (Hungarian folk singer)
James Brown "Soul Proud - The Instrumentals"
Fela Kuti and the Africa '70 (Live)
Nine Inch Nails "Downward Spiral"