About
Hi, I’m Marc, I’m a German pianist, composer, and music director.
I work internationally across a wide range of styles and genres, creating live and recorded music, for a stage or media context.
As Creative Director of Music at the National Theatre in London I look after a vast network of creatives making scores for plays and musicals. Outside the NT I consult with individuals and companies on all aspects of music production from conceptual ideas to sonic identities.
The common thread in all of this is my passion for creating ambitious, coherent, and contemporary soundworlds.
If you would like to discuss a project, please feel free to contact me here.
Pianoforte
Born in Stuttgart, I started piano lessons at the age of six. I played chamber music, concerts, and competitions. I discovered jazz and improvisation, joined several bands, and experimented with prepared piano techniques.
I went on to study piano at Freiburg University of Music with Felix Gottlieb, a student of Emil Giles, in the Russian piano tradition. Studying the classical repertoire under his mentorship gave me a deep insight into music that still guides me today.
Culture clash
After university I won a scholarship with the International Ensemble Modern Academy in Frankfurt. I focused on the contemporary classical repertoire, leading to many concerts in Europe, North and South America.
At the same time, I tried my hand at every gig that came my way, as piano and music teacher, ballet and opera repetiteur, keyboarder and pianist, music director and music supervisor - everything from avant-garde festivals to the Queen-theatrical We Will Rock You.
Over time this provided me with a unique insight into all facets of contemporary music creation. And it dawned on me then that the difference between art music and entertainment might not be so big after all.
“There is only good music and bad music.” (Kurt Weill)
Kapellmeister
The years of learning and hands-on experience eventually turned me into a modern Kapellmeister - a pianist, teacher, arranger, composer, conductor, producer, all rolled into one.
My unusual profile led to engagements in the subsidised as well as the commercial sector. I tried to bring the best of both worlds to creative processes by navigating the fine line between complexity and mainstream.
I founded the label Testklang and won a conducting position as Deputy Music Director of the world-renowned revue theatre Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin. After initial compositions for the Royal Shakespeare Company and other theatres in the UK I eventually moved to London. In 2017 I was appointed Creative Director of Music at the National Theatre.
Turning your story into a soundworld
To me, creating a soundworld means designing the emotional narrative of a specific sonic situation.
This might come as a piece of concert music, a musical score for the stage, a film or a computer game, a site-specific sound-installation, or a sonic identity for a product, brand, or institution.
Sound is ever-present. And just as the physical act of hearing is essentially different from the act of listening, a random sonic environment is very different from a beautifully designed soundworld.
If you would like my help to create a unique soundworld for you, feel free to reach out for an initial conversation.