Stefan Schäfer

Stefan Schäfer began his studies at the Hamburg Academy of Music and Theatre as a pianist before changing to the double bass in the class of Hans-Dieter Eschmann. He graduated with a diploma and soloist exam with distinction and continued his advanced studies with Klaus Stoll and Ovidiu Badila. Stefan Schäfer holds the position of principal double bassist of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra Hamburg and is an enthusiastic chamber musician, performing and recording with various ensembles (e.g. octet ensemble acht). He has recorded numerous CDs as a soloist and chamber musician. He is the chairman of the association “kammermusik heute e.V.” and has taught at the Hamburg Conservatory since 1995. In 1993 he was awarded the first prize of the Elise-Meyer-Foundation Hamburg. He is often invited to give international master classes for double bass and chamber music and serves as a jury member or chairman for international instrumental and interdisciplinary competitions. His numerous compositions are wide-ranging in genre and instrumentation. They are performed all over the world, e.g. in famous concert halls such as Carnegie Hall in New York, Vienna’s Konzerthaus and the Philharmonie Berlin. His works are also played at several competitions; for example, he composed the compulsory piece for the Third International Johann-Matthias-Sperger-Competition. In Great Britain and the USA his works were awarded composition prizes (British and International Bass Forum, International Society of Bassists). His works are either self-published under the imprint bassist composer publications or by the Hofmeister Musikverlag in Leipzig. From 2010 to 2012 Stefan Schäfer was Composer-in-Residence of the Baden-Württemberg Pedagogical Double Bass Association, which aims to launch new compositions for double bass instruction, but also for workshops and competitions. Furthermore, Schäfer’s oeuvre includes songs and chamber compositions as well as orchestral commissions for the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra. www.bassist-composer.de

More about Stefan Schäfer