I committed myself to the guitar very early in my life. The sound always fascinated me and at the age of 7 years, I decided I would master this wonderful instrument one day. Now, 30 years later, I am still learning and hope this will continue forever.
I enjoyed a classical education from Peter Benovic for the first 8 years of my training. He consequently taught and helped me to a level where I could continue to push my skills autodidactically and discover my style through exchanges with other musicans and projects.
After this initial training I turned my focus to the electric guitar and played in my first rock formations and enjoyed instrumental set-ups.
At 18, I found new inspiration under the tutorship of Edi Köhldorfer. His teachings opened new doors for me and awakened my love for jazz. He accompanied me through out my jazz guitar studies at Gustav Mahler Konservatorium in Vienna, for which I am very grateful.
Aside other musicians within the Viennese jazz & blues scene, Joe Valentin was a very important mentor for me. His lessons extended the scope of my musical horizons and the influences of classical and modern jazz, as well as the Latin American style and changed my way of playing permanently.
Vienna offered an inexhaustible array of impressions for a young musician and I used every opportunity to work on a diversity of projects. It was during this time that I began teaching guitar to earn a living.
In 2007 upon graduation, I worked several month in a construction business to raise the money needed to go, live and play in South America, Argentina.
In Argentina I learned Spanish and worked intensely on my own style and music. For a living, I taught music and worked on music projects for schools, such as the Goethe Institute of Buenos Aires. In the evenings I joined local tango musicians, played solo concerts and attended Jazz sessions. I was fortunate to be able to play gigs with outstanding musicians like the jazz saxophonist Pablo Ledesma, a meeting which still remains in my memory.
Through this work in Agentina I was invited to hold a lecture during the 35th International Book Fair in Buenos Aires and thereafter, at the world famous Goethe Univerity of Jena/Weinmar in Germany in 2009.
Upon return to Austria, I began teaching in music schools. My work expanded and I was invited to join in on numerous concerts, perform solo, work with orchestras, big bands and in musicals. Afterall, Austria is a blessed country for a musician. A high point of this time was a reunion with my first mentor, Peter Benovic, only this time we could play as colleagues in a classical guitar duo.
Today my focus is on extending my experience as a live player for gigs within Austria and abroad. In 2016 I formed a duo with the singer Erika Foramitti (jazz, blues & popular) and work as a free-lance musician and private guitar teacher.