Hearorlisten (to)?

‘Hearing’ is an event; it is something whichhappens to us as a natural process. ‘Listening’ is an action; it is something we do consciously.

Sometimes we can use eitherhearorlisten to, depending on whether we want to emphasise the event or the action:

Did youhearthat interview with David Beckham on the radio yesterday?(emphasis on the event)

Did youlisten tothat interview with David Beckham on the radio yesterday?(emphasis on the action)

I lovehearing/listening tothe sound of falling rain.

We don’t normally usehearin the continuous form. We often usehearwithcan:

[on an internet phone call]

Ican hearyou really clearly.

Not:I’m hearing you really clearly.

Not:Every morning I listen my Mozart CD…

We uselistenwithouttoif we do not mention the object, or if it is a discourse marker:

Meena,listen! I don’t want you staying out late!

Listen, I was wondering if you could help me.(discourse marker beginning a new topic or phase of a conversation)

The music was beautiful. We just sat there andlistened.