When I went away to university I got out of the habit of singing -- don't know why, it just didn't fit into residence life. Several years later, broke and working long hours, I was offered a free ticket to a concert by some folksinger I'd never heard of. Looking forward to a relaxing night out,I rolled off to the concert.

The singer was Stan Rogers, at his best in a Halifax venue. I was completely blown away -- it was like a conversion experience. He was a great songwriter and a wonderful performer, but what struck me the most was that he would actually sing unaccompanied -- that he would sometimes rely on the power of his voice alone to present his songs.

Stan Rogers gave me back my voice. I don't sing his songs much myself anymore -- I'm heavily into unaccompanied ballad-singing -- but in some strange way, he was the one who gave me permission to step out of the choir, out from behind the instruments, and forge that special partnership that unaccompanied singers have with the people who listen to them sing. I met my husband as a result of that partnership -- I've passed that freedom to sing on to my children, and I've made many friends through the songs I've sung and learned.

I would certainly say that the music and the voice of Stan Rogers changed my life.