- ANDREAS WILLERS -







- started out as a blues- and avantgarde guitarist, first outing in 81 on the FMP label (Hier & Als Auch, Gitarre Solo),

- studied el.guitar and composition in Los Angeles, Hamburg and Banff (Canada),

- has played and/or recorded with Paul Bley, Louis Sclavis, Enrico Rava, Bob Stewart, Marvin Smitty Smith, Dave Liebman, Trilok Gurtu, David Murray, Mark Dresser, Bobby Previte, Mark Feldman, Jim Black, Steve Argüelles, Dominique Pifarély, Marc Ducret, Anders Jormin, Tom Rainey, Phil Haynes, Lauren Newton, Rita Marcotulli, Elvira Plenar, Kent Carter, Petras Vysniauskas, Gabriele Hasler, Frank Köllges, Matthias Schubert, E.L. Petrowski, Theo Jörgensmann, Uwe Kropinski, Jörg Huke, Volker Schlott, Dieter Manderscheid, Lu Hübsch, Claudio Puntin, Dieter Ilg, Hans Lüdemann, Dirk Raulf. Frank Schulte a.o., the Duo Ullmann/Willers, the groups Out To Lunch, Minimal Kidds, Jazz Baltica Ensemble,

- toured Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Australia/New Zealand and Southeast Asia for the Goethe Institut, – festival appearences include Vancouver, Berlin, Vienna, Salzburg, Melbourne, Jakarta, Istanbul, Wroclaw, Managua, Münster, Moers, Köln, Leverkusen, Vilshoven, Kiel, Viersen, tours throughout the USA and Europe,

- has composed for the Jazz Baltica Ensemble, the NDR Bigband, different New Music ensembles,

- Several scholarships and awards,

- founding member of the musicians cooperative Jazzfront Berlin-Brandenburg, was member of the Initiative Kölner Jazzhaus,

- taught electric guitar at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler, Berlin, from 1991-96.







– ‘The German guitar player A.W. is certainly one of the most interesting voices in Europe.’    allaboutjazz.com

- ‘….combines contrasting techniques, worlds of tones and traditions into a singular, easy-to-identify sound.’   the RoRoRo Jazz Lexicon

- ‘Willers style is well-rounded; especially attractive is his classical guitar work where we can hear his fine touch most clearly. He also posesses an unusually wide intervallic sense, rarely does one hear a guitarist who sounds so much as if hes listened to Eric Dolphy.’  Chris Kelsey (CADENCE Mag., USA)

- ‘Bizarre. Baffling. Enticing. Exiting. Ultimately Unique. .. All we can say is this is one of the most ambitious Hendrix projects we have ever come across.’   (VOODOO CHILD Mag., USA )

- In the article Enja – 30 years on duty for jazz for Jazzthetik magazine Rolf Thomas includes The Ground Music by the Andreas Willers Octet in the ten quintessential Enja albums

- ‘EXPLOSIVE MIXTURE. When guitarist Andreas Willers gets going, some musical TNT is blowing up – hes that precise in developing and focussing his ideas. And he is able to move completely througt the enormeous stylistic bandwidth at his disposal without stirring up any doubt in his individuality.’   (JAZZTHING Mag., Germany)

- ‘…Obviously having fun using (studio & electronics) he does so in a remarkably tasteful fashion often close to modern classical music and then turns around to deliver guitaristics. Homogenous, discerning taste is at hand, winning musicality and a knack for the well-dosed shock.’A.Schmitz (in the book Jazz Guitarists, Oreos)

- ‘Willers could easily be the most influential european guitarist would he not always put the strictest intellectual judgement on his own work at all times.’   Reclam Jazz Lexicon

- ‘A.W. seems always able to astound himself and others musically.’   Frankfurter Rundschau