The Guitar Player's Resource
Mind-blowingly fast sweeps. Complex, classically influenced progressions. Odd, even and fractional meters. Shredded, corpse-chopping, speed picking. A head-splittingly large number of notes! All this and more can be heard on German Schauss' demo CD-R Acceleration 420, a collection of eight neo-classical progressive instrumentals designed to shock, awe and make you soil your drawers. You'll feel as if you're travelling at 420 MPH through a tunnel on a motorcycle as you hear the notes whizzing by your ears, made possible by Schauss' total technical mastery of his instrument. The material on the demo, as heavy as is, could benefit by a real drummer instead of a machine, but for the purposes of showing Schauss' skill on the six-string, it probably does the job. Speed freaks have another potential hero coming their way when Schauss finds a bassist and drummer that can keep up with him.
Born in Germany, German was influenced by American hard rock and instrumental guitar music such as Yngwie Malmsteen and Racer X. When German was twelve his grandmother bought a guitar, which he picked up and started playing. He soon got serious about the guitar and he decided to become the best and fastest guitar player in the world. After finishing High School in 1995, he attended the Munich Guitar Institute (MGI) in 1996 and was voted the fastest guitar player. In 1998 he left Germany to go to Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, in order to refine his guitar playing and compositional skills. Recently, German has finished his education at Berklee College of Music with a Bachelors Degree in Professional Music graduating with honors, Magna Cum Laude. He also has been playing guitar for a new musical production, "Hot Star Nebraska" which was performed in spring 2002.
Currently, German is working on his music, practicing, recording 24 hours a day, and rehearsing with his solo band as well as recording and playing out with his new sounding rock project Esoteriqa which draws from several styles, including funk, shred and hip hop. German will be teaching this summer at the five-week performance and one week guitar session program at Berklee College of Music. This summer, German will be performing with his band at the prestigious Jemfest in Orlando.
German Schauss
United States
Web site: www.germanschauss.com