My composition style

I see the main characteristic of my compositional style as the increased re-inclusion of tonal structures and classical forms, without purely replicating past musical styles. My compositions are a synthesis of tonality and the atonal musical language of 20th and 21st century music with its sound experiments.

My musical stages

I completed a pedagogical study for double bass at the Anton Bruckner Private University in Linz. Since 1987 I have been teaching “my” instrument at various music schools in the province of Upper Austria. In addition to teaching, for a long time I was also on the road myself as a musician in ensembles and orchestras in Austria and abroad. Outstanding projects for me during this time were concerts with music personalities such as Franz Welser-Möst (Vienna Festival), Giuseppe Mancini, Joe Zawinul (Klangwolke Linz) as well as those with the Bruckner Orchestra Linz.
In the absence of suitable, modern teaching literature for the double bass, I wrote a double bass school in three volumes between 2004 and 2007. The pieces I composed for this school try to reflect contemporary musical styles in order to encourage the students to enjoy making music.
Encouraged by the success of this school throughout the German-speaking world and the encouragement of my composition teacher at the time, I decided to return to Anton Bruckner Private University for a third professional education in 2008: in 2014 I graduated with a master’s degree in composition. During this time I practiced pieces for larger ensembles and musical forms such as string orchestra, symphony orchestra, string quartet, concerto, choir, various ensembles and solo instruments.

How my compositions sound? Just click through my online store for sheet music with audio samples and individual pages for viewing!

My thoughts on today’s so-called “serious” music

Why are concert halls often full for programs from about before 1900, while they are usually sparsely filled for programs with music of the 20th century or today’s “serious” music?
The fact that I often miss a spontaneous enthusiasm and emotional involvement in concerts with new music seems to me to provide an answer to this question. My thoughts and assumptions on this are that in so-called new music, tonal structures are often largely left out in terms of vertical direction (harmonies, chords) as well as horizontal direction (melody lines).
Apparently, for most composers of our time there is the unwritten law or even taboo of using tonality at all. There is perhaps an insurmountable fear that if one includes traditional harmonies or even noticeable melodic lines in compositions, one will be considered regressive or banal – and consequently not taken seriously in today’s music business.