DESCRIPTION:
Rico creates musical compositions using many different HOHNER instruments and objects, including guitar, bass, keyboard, melodica, harmonica, and glass bottles, along with his voice (singing and mouth percussion, or beat-boxing). He plays and records a segment of music, which then repeats continuously. He can then play another segment of music and layer it on top of the previous one. With each layer the composition becomes more complex.
Rico Diessner was born in Dresden, East Germany on September 21, 1968. He grew up in both East and West Berlin, and since that time he has traveled extensively and led a diverse and spontaneous life. He draws on his life experiences to create his expressive and worldly music, which can be heard and seen during his energetic performances. At a young age Rico gained much inspiration from his father, a bass guitarist for a well known band in East Germany. His early musical education started with piano lessons, but soon he was writing his own songs and at the age of fifteen joined a school band as a pianist.
Motivated by the other musicians he learned to play several kinds of instruments, and soon discovered that making music is more than just technical skill. To him it was a language of the heart, where 'feeling' an instrument and building intimacy and connection between the music and listeners is paramount. In 1989, when Rico was 21, the fall of the Berlin wall prompted him to explore the world. For ten years he lived an independent artistic life as a street musician, traveling across Asia, the Americas, and Europe. He worked closely with other musicians and was exposed to the diverse world music styles that find their way into his music. His endeavors also included farming his own land and working as a street performer and juggler. Between travels he occasionally returned to Berlin.
In 2004 Rico discovered the LOOP STATION and introduced his most recent project, 'ricoloop', which uses his talents as a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and improviser to create unique musical compositions by himself. From there on Rico performed almost daily and had concerts around Europe. Rico currently lives in Berlin, Ibiza and continues his pursuit of musical experimentation and learning.