Violinist/violist, performance artist and ethnomusicologist Parmela Attariwala has studied and lived in Canada, the United States and Europe. Although her intentions had been to become a surgeon, Parmela instead holds a Bachelor's degree in Violin Performance from Indiana University, and a Masters' Degree in Ethnomusicology from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) which focused on the relationship between poetry and music in medieval North Indian devotional song.

Originally from Calgary, Parmela has been based in Toronto since 1994, where she is known for her versatility as a musician. Parmela specializes in contemporary, cross-cultural, improvised and performance art music, and is as equally at home playing with traditional classical orchestras as with folk musicians, rock bands and avant-garde jazz ensembles.

In 1997, Parmela released her critically acclaimed debut CD, Beauty Enthralled. The CD represented Parmela’s desire to combine the eclectic threads of her upbringing. Centered on Harry Somers monumental “Music for Solo Violin”, it includes four works by Western composers who have been influenced by India, and a fifth collaborative work with singer Kiran Ahluwalia. The commissioned work "La" for violin, tabla and drones by Robert Rosen, has become one of the most often-performed works of Canadian new music composed in the past decade; and Beauty Enthralled, one of the most sought after discs distributed through the Canadian Music Centre.

In the spring of 2003, Parmela released a second CD, Sapphire Skies, which features some of her own compositions inspired and performed by a cross section of some of Canada‘s most sought after musicians of various genres: classical, jazz, South Asian and rock. Wholenote magazine has called it, “a recording to treasure.”

Parmela's first foray into movement was her creating the role of the Violinist in the Banff Centre's performance-art opera "Kafka’s Chimp." Soon thereafter, she began collaborating with bharata-natyam dancer Gitanjali Kolanad, who created a bharata-natyam based movement vocabulary that allowed Parmela to synchronously play the violin and dance.

As a performer, Parmela has toured with jazz legend Carla Bley; tabla player Ravi Naimpally (TASA), dancer Gitanjali Kolanad, guitarist Andrew Hurlbut, and with many Canadian and European classical music ensembles through North America, Europe, India and Africa.  Closer to home, Parmela has performed at the Distillery Jazz Festival, the Museum of Civilization in Hull as part of the Arts of South Asia series, was featured in Valerie Kuinka’s Collaborations Series “Samskara” at the du Maurier Theatre, Dusk Dances, the Festival of the Sound in Parry Sound, fFIDA, MasalaMehndiMaasti!, and Kokoro Dance in Vancouver. She has provided music for playwrights Sheila James and Soraya Peerbaye, and for choreographers Gitanjali Kolanad, Karen Kaeja and Keiko Kitano.

Parmela has received grants and awards from various organizations including the Canada Council, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Banff Centre, the Government of Switzerland; as well as the Sikh Centennial Foundation and the Punjabi Chamber of Commerce for her contributions as a Sikh Canadian.

In the fall of 2004, Parmela began Ph.D. studies in Ethnomusicology at the University of Toronto. The focus of her studies is the effects of globalization, post-colonialism, and identity politics on contemporary music-making; and the role of post-secondary institutions in training the next generation of musicians in a multicultural context. These studies are being generously funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

"Dispenses her technique effortlessly."  - The Strad

"Dazzling" technical command. - Musicworks Magazine

"a gifted musician" - Rhythm Magazine

"Visually and sonically exhilirating." - magizone

Beauty Enthralled - "A cross-cultural handshake to set the mind spinning." - NOW

Sapphire Skies - "a recording to treasure." - Wholenote