"Though the point of reference for many remains the iconic band Henry Cow, which he co-founded in 1968 and which broke up more than 30 years ago, Fred Frith has never really stood still for an instant.

In bands such as Art Bears, Massacre, Skeleton Crew, Keep the Dog, Tense Serenity, the Fred Frith Guitar Quartet, Eye to Ear, and most recently Cosa Brava, he has always held true to his roots in rock and folk music, while exploring influences that range from the literary works of Eduardo Galeano to the art installations of Cornelia Parker.

The release of the seminal Guitar Solos in 1974 enabled him to simultaneously carve out a place for himself in the international improvised music scene, not only as an acclaimed solo performer but in the company of artists as diverse as Han Bennink, Chris Cutler, Jean-Pierre Drouet, Evelyn Glennie, Ikue Mori, Louis Sclavis, Stevie Wishart, Wu Fei, Camel Zekri, John Zorn, and scores of others.

He has also developed a personal compositional language in works written for Arditti Quartet, Asko Ensemble, Bang on a Can All-Stars, Ensemble Modern, Concerto Köln, and ROVA Sax Quartet, for example. Fred has been active as a composer for dance since the early 1980s, working with choreographers Bebe Miller, François Verret, and especially long-time collaborator and friend Amanda Miller, with whom he has created a compelling body of work over the last twenty years.

His film soundtracks (for award-winning films like Thomas Riedelsheimer's Rivers and Tides and Touch the Sound, Peter Mettler's Gambling, Gods, and LSD, and Deborah Kaufman and Alan Snitow's Thirst, to name a few) won him a lifetime achievement award from Prague's "Music on Film, Film on Music" Festival (MOFFOM) in 2007. The following year he received Italy's Demetrio Stratos Prize (previously given to Diamanda Galas and Meredith Monk) for his life's work in experimental music, and in 2010 was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Huddersfield in his home county of Yorkshire.

Fred currently teaches in the Music Department at Mills College in Oakland, California (renowned for over fifty years as the epicenter of the American experimental tradition), and in the Musik Akademie in Basel, Switzerland."

"Sophia Goidinger-Koch (1987) lives in Vienna and works as a freelance musician in contemporary and improvised music.

Ms. Goidinger-Koch is violinist and violist of Studio Dan. She is also cofounder of strings&noise (with Maiken Beer) and Hedda (with Klaus Haidl). She is a frequent guest with many other ensembles and orchestras including Klangforum Wien, Ensemble Schallfeld and Ensemble Phace.
 She has had the opportunity to work with musicians and composers including Vinko Globokar, Michel Doneda, Elliott Sharp, Gunter Schneider, Burkhard Stangl, Renald Deppe, Frank Gratkowski, Clemens Wenger, Maja Osojnik, and Daniel Riegler; and she has attended masterclasses and workshops with Christian Wolff, Pierluigi Billone, Francesco Filidei, Georg Friedrich Haas, Ernst Kovacic as well as with Klangforum Wien.

Ms. Goidinger-Koch has played numerous concerts in Austria and abroad. Highlights have included the Vienna Konzerthaus, the Vienna Musikverein, Porgy&Bess, Wiener Festwochen, Salzburger Festspiele, Kampnagel Hamburg, Zappanale Bad Doberan, and EXPO Mailand (2015).

She studied violin and viola at the Mozarteum Innsbruck with Christos Kanettis, at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna with Univ.-Prof. Thomas Fheodoroff. 2015 she graduated with honors from "Performance Practice in Contemporary Music" with Klangforum Vienna at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz."

"Maiken Beer, born in 1977 in Vienna, is a freelance cellist for classical, contemporary, and improvised music. She is the founder of the duo "celloduoburghardbeer" and a member of the Black Page Orchestra. She has also worked with, among many others, Clemens Wenger, Matthias Kranebitter, Julia Purgina, Mirela Ivičević, the JazzWerkstatt Vienna, Neue Oper Wien, snim, Ensemble szene instrumental, Janus Ensemble, and Ensemble Reconsil."

Philipp Kienberger-doublebass

"Born and raised in Carinthia, Austria, Philipp currently lives and works in Vienna. As a bass player (electric and double bass) he is active in different genres of music. In his past projects he has been involved in progressive metal and rock music, hip-hop, free improvisation, jazz, and contemporary music. As a composer he is always searching for new sound structures, the unconventional and progressive, ideas that cross interdisciplinary and cultural boundaries.

Since 2015 he has been a member of the Viennese society FREIFELD, whose aim it is to support the progressive music scene in Vienna and on whose label FREIFELD TONTRAEGER he has released all of his music to date."

"Doris Nicoletti was born in Graz and received her first music lessons at the conservatory in her hometown. After graduating from high school, she moved to the J.M.Hauer Conservatory in Wiener Neustadt and at the same time completed a degree in sociology at the University of Vienna. In 2005 she continued her flute studies with Barbara Gisler-Haase at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. Other important teachers included Eva Furrer (Klangforum Wien), Philippe Bernold (CNSMD Lyon) and Chiara Tonelli (Mahler Chamber Orchestra).

After receiving her concert diploma with distinction, she received the Federal Chancellery's starting grant for music and performing arts, which supported her committed collaboration with the young composer scene and the innovative musical projects that resulted from it. In the years that followed, she managed to be accepted three times with different formations into the NASOM (The New Austrian Sound of Music) funding program of the Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs (BMEIA).

In addition to the PHACE ensemble, she is currently a member of Studio Dan (www.studiodan.at), the Synesthetic Octet (www.synestheticoctet.com) and the Ensemble of the Lucerne Festival Alumni. As a guest musician at the Klangforum and the RSO Vienna, as well as with various chamber music formations, she has performed at important festivals such as the Salzburg Festival, the Lucerne Festival, the Vienna Festival, the Munich Opera Festival, the Ruhrtriennale, Wien Modern, the Steirischer Herbst, as well as at the Lincoln Center New York, the Berlin Philharmonie, the Muziekgebouw Amsterdam and the Vienna Konzerthaus.

From 2014-2020 she was also a lecturer for flute at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna."

"Viola Falb (* 1980 in Großwiesendorf ) is an Austrian jazz musician (saxophone, clarinet, composition), who uses "Influences between free jazz and folklore and chamber music" in her compositions.

At the age of seven, Falb attended the Eggenburg Music School, where she first took piano lessons before the saxophone became her main instrument at the age of eleven. In 1994 she switched to the Hollabrunn Music School. In 1998 she graduated from high school in Hollabrunn ; During her school days, Falb played in various jazz ensembles at the music school, the big band and in the saxophone quartet. After graduating from high school, she continued her education at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna , where she had lessons from Christian Maurer, Oto Vrhovnik , Klaus Dickbauer and Wolfgang Puschnig . After completing his bachelor's degree with a focus on pianoWith Michael Lipp in 2002/03 she continued her master's degree in saxophone popular music with a focus on composition, arrangement, big band and ensemble, which she completed in 2007 with distinction. They also had at this time of study at the Academy of Music "Hanns Eisler" Berlin 2004/2005, graduated from the jazz theory studies at Andy Middleton at the Vienna Conservatory 2006/2007, the master degree in jazz composition with Christoph Cech at the Anton Bruckner University in Linz 2007/2008 and classes in New York City with Chris Potter , Steve Lehman , Ellery Eskelin ,Rudresh Mahanthappa , Will Vinson and Max Pollak 2010 as well as composition and saxophone lessons with Django Bates , Gerald Resch and Hayden Chisholm 2013.

From the mid-2000s, Falb worked with the band Jazz with Ralf (with Wolfgang Schiftner, Arnold Zamarin, Florian Fennes ), with whom the first recordings were made in 2004. In 2004 she founded the formation Falb Fiction (with Christian Wendt , Herbert Pirker , Philipp Jagschitz ), for which she also composed and recorded three albums so far. Since then, she has also worked with the saxophone quartet Phoen (album Verdelte (2010), with Christoph Pepe Auer , Florian Fennes, Arnold Zamarin) and the Barbara Bruckmüller Big Band ( Mei Mutterl was a Weanerin, 2015). Her own projects also include the Duo Kitsch & Glory (with Maria Holzeis-Augustin), the experimental trio Trip-Ling (with Michael Bruckner-Weinhuber and Martin Ptak), which is influenced by John Zorn's News for Lulu project a duo with bassist Bernd Satzinger.

Viola Falb has also received numerous composition commissions, including for the Austrian Brass Music Association , the Vienna Jazz Workshop , the Weinviertel Festival , the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, the Lower Austrian Composers Association and the Spontaneous Network for Improvised Music . She has taught at the Retz Music School (Lower Austria) and since 2012 at the Hollabrunn Music School. [...]"

Spiros Laskaridis-trumpet:

"Born in 1979 in Corfu he took his first trumpet lessons at the Philharmonic Society Mantzaros. He studied in Athens with Sokratis Anthis and Panagiotis Kessaris. Further studies at the Musikhögskolan iMalmö with Bo Nilsson, Håkan Hardenberger and Leif Bengtsson (natural trumpet).

He was a member of the Thessaloniki State Orchestra in 2008, became Principal Trumpet of the Greek National Opera Orchestra the same year, and held that position until 2012.

He collaborated with the Malmö SymfoniOrkest, the Athens State Orchestra, the Orchestra of Colours, the Wiener Kammerorchester, and regularly plays with the Orchestra of the Wiener Volksoper.

Having a varied range of musical interpretations, he enjoys playing both early as well as contemporary music.

As a Natural Trumpeterhe worked with Camerata-Armonia Atenea, recorded for Decca Classics, and plays frequently with the Bach Consort Wien.

As a contemporary music performer, he collaborated with the Greek Ensemble of Contemporary Music, the Experimental Stage of the Greek National Opera, the Ensemble Reconsil Vienna, and is a member of the Ergon Ensemble since 2010."

"Daniel Riegler Ð Trombone, Composition. Born in 1977, Graz, Austria.

Works as a freelance trombonist, composer, ensemble director and producer of improvised, contemporary and jazz-related music. As a trombonist he regularly performs with the Klangforum Wien, as a composer and ensemble leader, he received commissions from renowned ensembles and institutions (21er Haus Wien, ensemble fŸr neue musik zŸrich, NDR Big Band, Jazz Festival Saalfelden É).

He co-founded the JazzWerkstatt Wien and works intensely as the artistic director of the self founded chamber ensemble Studio Dan. He has received numerous grants and awards (Staatsstipendium fŸr Komposition 2015, Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik/Bestenliste 02/2010,É)

Furthermore, he works/ed, among others with Elliott Sharp, Vinko Globokar, Michel Doneda, Friedrich Cerha and the ensemble Òdie reiheÓ.

He lives with cellist Maiken Beer and his two children in Vienna.

"Born in 1982 in Zams, Tyrol, jazz piano study at 'Tiroler Landeskonservatorium', jazz piano study at 'Gustav-Mahler-Konservatorium' in Vienna under Paul Urbanek, Masterclasses with Jacky Terrasson, Rob McConnel, Bobby McFerrin and Lee Harper. Since 2009 teacher for piano and Ensemble/Live Performance as well as Music Theory, since 2014 Head of Keyboard Instruments at the VMI-Vienna Music Institute.

Collaboration with Billy Cobham, Jeff Richman, Joel Taylor, Wolfgang Puschnig, Ulrich Drechsler, Lorenz Raab, Zipflo Weinrich, Gerd Hermann Ortler (GHO Orchestra), Wolfgang Mitterer Herbert Pirker, Matthias Pichler, Andreas Pichler, Florian Bramböck, Herwig Gradischnig, Sebastian Gille, Stephen Menotti, Paul Hübner, Merke Kazokoglu, Peter Rom, Clemens Salesny, Lukas König, Nicolas Letman-Burtinovic, Flip Philipp, JazzWerstatt Wien, Studio Dan and more.

Activities 2015/16:

- Concerts with the band 'Cafe Drechsler'

- Concerts with the 'Ulrich Drechsler Trio'

- Concerts with 'Sugar Daisy´s Hot Club'

- Oper 'Schneewittchen' (Snow White) by Wolfgang Mitterer

- Europe tour with the band 'Studio Dan'

- Diverse album appearances and radio recordings with 'Studio Dan', Barry Good', Duo Mayr/Tiefenbacher, Wolfgang Mitterer...

Press:

- Michael Tiefenbacher, an exceptional pianist from Tyrol. A name that one should take note of. (Andreas Felber, Ö1)

- Very beautiful sound. Very creative. (Shai Maestro - Pianist at the 'Avishai Cohen Trio')

- I think he´s the only kexboardist to ever do a whole chorus of 5's in 8th note groupings in 7/8 and keep it together! Thats´s some drummer shit! (Joel Taylor - drums at Scott Henderson, Frank Gambale, Robben Ford...)

It is very important for me to communicate an intuitive approach to music. This means knowing and having a command of your instrument, developing your ear as well as possible, and keep training your musical imagination. (Michael Tiefenbacher)"

"Born 1981 in Tulln, Lower Austria, studied Jazz-Drums at the "Konservatorium Wien" University

Performances In Austria: among others Szene Wien, WUK, Porgy&Bess, Jazz Fest Wien, Klezmore Festival Wien, Glatt & Verkehrt Krems, Jazzfestival Saalfelden, Kaleidophon Ullrichsberg, Artacts Festival, Unlimited Wels, Popfest ViennaIn Germany: among others Moers Festival, "Frischzelle" Cologne, Triennale Cologne, tff Rudolstadt, Enjoy Jazz Festival Mannheim, Philharmonic Hall Hamburg, Beethoven Festival BonnRest of the World: Italy, Luxemburg, Rumania, Switzerland, Serbia, Slowenia, Hungary and the USA.

Recordings and Shows for various TV and radio stations (among others ORF, WDR)

Records with the Klezmer-Band Nifty's ("Takeshi Express","Naftularasa"), /w Maja Osojnik Band ("Crne Vode"), /w Hannes Löschel Stadtkapelle ("Herz.Bruch.Stück","Im Wirtshaus"), w/ Exit Eden feat. Phil Minton ("Songs of Innocence"), w/ the Low Frequency Orchestra ("S", "Das Spiel vom Kommen und Gehen", LFO & Wolfgang Mitterer "MOLE"), the viennese duo "Die Strottern" and many more

Numerous Theatre Projects For Kids /w Ensemble TeTeTe ("Theresas Traum", "Gregors Garten", "Antonioni Antonini und die größte Schau der Welt", "Bienenkino"), /w Lukas Thöni ("Draußen bei den Farben"), /w Karin Steinbrugger ("Es gibt so Tage")

Dance and Performance Productions w/ Dominik Grünbühel and Luke Baio: "Dudes II", "Shoot Me", "Good Cop/Bad Cop Cycle" and "De-Il-Lusion"; w/ Hannes Löschel and Rose Preuss: "Paradise Lost: Exit Eden", w/ Karin Steinbrugger ("Es gibt so Tage"), w Lukas Thöni ("Draußen bei den Farben")

Accompanying Musician at the institute of Contemporary Dance Education at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna: university professorship since September 2015

Collaborations among others w/ David Helbock, Katharina Klement, Phil Minton, Wolfgang Mitterer, Hannes Löschel, Max Nagl, Burkhard Stangl, Maja Osojnik, Christian Reiner, Daniel Riegler, Fabian Rucker, Clemens Salesny, Jorge Sanchez-Chiong, Bernd Satzinger, Achim Tang, Clayton Thomas, Lukas Thöni, Andreas Waelti, Clemens Wenger, Studio Dan, Jazzwerkstatt Wien, Low Frequency Orchestra, Maohl's Gift and many more."