II was born on the 30th of April 1960 in Wangen im Allgäu (Germany).
My first instrument was the Accordion but after hearing ‘The Beatles’ I decided to change to Guitar.
Sometime later i played the Guitar in lots of folk groups along with the Mandolin and Banjo.
By the age of 19 or 20 i was in demand more and more as an Electric Bass player and this is where I started to play Jazz-rock in a variety of groups.
I started to take more of an interest in Jazz when I arrived in France in 1985.
I met Hans J.Kullock and I enrolled at CMCN in Nancy (now M.A.I.) and obtained my diploma in 1990.
In Nancy I met lots of musicians. I have played with Franck Agulhon, Philippe Canovas, Jean-Michel Albertucci, Pascal Nicol, Denis Palatin. and lots of others who have taught me lots of things and to whom I am eternally grateful. In order to eat I worked in lots of variety shows backing Accordionists and Dance Orchestras.
Afterwards I went to live in Vosges (in the south of the region Lorraine) here I had my first experience of Big Bands, playing in the “Blue Line Orchestra” from Epinal. Whist there I met Pascal Parisot, the Drummer Martin Balland and Ulysse Piedra who introduced me to (it wasn’t easy)! the Bossa Nova and other Latin rhythms.
In the 1990’s I enrolled at the Conservatoire of Metz where I took some Double Bass lessons with Riccardo Del Fra, the only problem was I didn’t have a Double Bass!
For 2 years whilst in Metz I organised a Jam Session at the Oscar Bar (1997 – 1999). This turned out to be a very rewarding time in my life for meeting people. I met my friends Edouard Romano, Damien Prud’homme, Julien Petit, Alex Tran, Jean-Marc Robin, Donald Régnier… and that was the birth of the “Mister Oz Big Band”!
After the Oscar Bar closed we moved to the “Trinitaires” in Metz. As a result we had the facilities to invite great soloists such as Bob Mintzer, Eric Barret, Olivier Ker Ourio, Claude Egéa, Stéphane Guillaume, Ernie Hammes, Manu Codjia, Claudio Favari Valérie Graschaire…
Here I’d like to say a big thank you to Pierre-Frédéric Klos who sadly left us much too early.
At the moment I’m travelling around Europe with the “NZZ Blues Band” presenting our new album, recorded in Chicago in 2006, "Mister Oz's Big Band ("Tribute to Django" and "Sting Project) , "Glenn's Swing Orchestra" and my own Sextet "French Connection " (Art of Blakey)
I’m also honoured to have played with: Claudio Favari, Dorado Schmitt, Samson Schmitt, Mike Reinhardt, Jean-Michel Albertucci, Andreas Oberg, Robin Nolan, Murat Ozturk, MéLET, Nico Zdankiewicz, Tildi Horton. a thousand excuses if I’ve forgotten anybody but it’s my age and the beer!
I play a fretless Fender Jazzbass by THIERRY CAREL and electric upright bass by MAURICE DUPONT. I thanks Carlos for his SKULL STRINGS
