Dominique Starck

Biography

Dominique Starck was born in 1956 into a family of musicians from Strassburg, whose musical heritage was passed on from generation to generation. In his youth he played in various band formations as guitarist and composer. He studied at Zurich Conservatory of Music and Musikhochschule Zurich with Gertrud Brun and Walter Feybli and graduated with a concert diploma with distinction in 1978. He studied composition with Josef Haselbach and devoted his further studies to Oriental, Far-Eastern and African music.
His composition work was also influenced by studies of music, Alexander technique and Chi-Gong with L. Jeng-Chun Chen (Taiwan) and studies of African music with Cheikh Tidiane Niane (Senegal).
Dominique Starck's chamber music concert performances as member of the Johannes Kobelt Quartett and various other formations (Jazz and classical) have taken him through various parts of Europe and USA. Numerous CD, Radio and TV recordings have been produced over the past years.
2010 marked the release of Dominique Starck's Anniversary CD „Remastered Guitar Works 1990-2010“ as well as his participation in Dechen Shak Dagsay's new album “Jewel” (Universal Music).
Through his research work with Prof. Dr. Balthasar Staehelin (University of Zürich), US music therapist John Buttrick, meetings with the Massais in Africa as well as Native Indians in the USA, Dominique Starck was able to build on his knowledge and interest in the therapeutic aspects of music.
During the last 20 years Dominique Starck created diverse compositions for meditation music and a method for chanting techniques inspired by traditional Indian, Tibetan and Native American Indian chanting. Over the years he was a student of various shamanic and spiritual schools.