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Success Stories
VMI graduate on the road to success
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Under the stage name PAENDA, the singer and VMI graduate Gabriela Horn has been extremely successful for quite some time now, performing numerous concerts in front of enthusiastic audiences. PAENDA is a success story that impresses with its sovereignty and professionalism. She also proved this when she performed, for example, at Europe's largest open air festival in 2018 or at the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv.
Most successful band in the country
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The guitarist Bernd Brodträger completed his concert and IGP studies at the VMI and started an extremely professional music career directly afterwards. As guitarist of the most successful band in the country, he has been on tour with "Seiler und Speer" ever since. The band now not only fills the biggest halls in Austria, but is also on tour throughout the entire German-speaking world. Curtains up on the virtuoso guitarist and his band.
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World-class virtuosity
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Under his stage name Marthyn, the VMI graduate was already intensively involved with double bass drum techniques during his studies at our institute. He has long been one of the most virtuosic drummers in this field, which is why his online lessons are now appreciated worldwide. In the following video the likeable musician demonstrates a small part of his phenomenal techniques.
Graduates and teachers
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The following video proves that students not only benefit from the VMI student community, but also collaborate or form bands with our teachers time and again. Singer Lise Huber and drummer Konstantin Kräutler both graduated from VMI with excellent results. Together with VMI lecturer Oliver Steger on bass, they have since been working together successfully in the band "Lil Maxine".
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Powerful and successful
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Caroline Kreutzberger became known beyond the borders of Austria in 2011, when she reinterpreted the song "Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore" by Celine Dion on the RTL show "Supertalent". Since then, the powerful-voiced singer has been able to make a name for herself as a much-booked performer. In the following video, she impressively proves that the VMI graduate can also interpret her own songs excellently.
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VMI Band Contest Winner
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Right at the beginning of their studies, the singer-songwriters, Daniel Weixler and Andrea Tichy, won a VMI band contest with a concert trip to the Netherlands. The highlight of this trip, where they also met winners from other partner universities, was a performance on the 'Altersonic stage' as part of the 'Eurosonic Showcase Festival'. In the following video diary you can see a small excerpt of this fantastic trip.
Breath-taking solo performance
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Emanuel Treu studied singing and guitar at VMI at the same time and completed both courses of study with excellent success back in 2008. Since then he has been working successfully as a songwriter and composes for Universal Music, among others. The following recording was made while he was still a student at the VMI and shows that the charismatic musician could not be measured in conventional categories even then.
International teaching assignments
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The German-born percussionist Michael Kihn not only completed his studies at the VMI with distinction. He then immediately received a scholarship from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. As if that were not enough, he went on to study at the New School in New York. Since then, the virtuoso musician has been a sought-after drummer and lecturer, with engagements and teaching assignments in South America and other parts of the world.
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In the band of Song Contest Winner
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Bassist Florian Schaffellner and drummer Lukas Schönsgibl both studied at the VMI-Vienna Music Institute at the same time. This resulted in a musical friendship and cooperation that led them to work together in a wide variety of projects and bands. Among them is a collaboration with one of the most famous musical voices in the world, the Austrian song contest winner Conchita Wurst.
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Scholarship for follow-up studies in the USA
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The drummer Konstantin Kräutler, who comes from Vorarlberg, already demonstrated great musicality during his studies at the VMI. After his studies in Vienna, which he completed with excellent results, he received a Fulbright-Stipendium scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he further perfected his musicality. The following video him with some American fellow students from that time.
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Radical band with string participation
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»Among the domestic bands with string participation, Sain Mus are the most radical«, wrote Klaus Nüchtern in the daily newspaper "Der Falter" about the band of VMI graduate Philipp Erasmus. Michael Ternai (MICA) further commented that it is »music you can hardly escape«. We gladly agree with these opinions and are happy about the musical enrichment by the two musicians.
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Concert tour to the Netherlands
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The winner of the VMI Band Contest 2016/17 was the band FIN. The talented musicians used the prize of a concert tour to the Netherlands to combine it with a few more concerts in Germany. The highlight of the tour was a performance on the "Altersonic stage" at the "Eurosonic Noorderslag Festival", which takes place every year as the biggest showcase festival in Europe.
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Students at work
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Full of energy, singer Valentina Piegger returned to Vienna in 2018 from a semester abroad at one of our international partner universities. This was followed by the final spurt of her studies, which she completed together with guitarist David Theni, who has since worked successfully in Germany. This video shows them while they were still students at VMI.
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Voted among the best guitarists in the world
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Conrad Schrenk has always been considered one of the most virtuosic guitarists in the country. In 2017, this assessment was surpassed by far and confirmed internationally when he was counted among the 100 best fusion guitarists worldwide by "Realityspeaks". In the following video he demonstrates a small excerpt of his breathtaking skills.
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Vocal coach of international standing
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Charismatic full-blooded musician Chanda Rule lived and worked in New York City for many years. In 2017, the gifted singer began teaching at VMI and sharing her invaluable skills with our students. Chanda Rule has continued to perform internationally and collaborate with numerous greats in the music business.
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Versatile and well booked
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Mel Verez is one of the most versatile voices in the country and is booked for numerous events and projects. Since 2017, the likeable singer has been working at the VMI, coaching vocal students in different semesters and a wide variety of techniques. In the following recording you can get an idea of her phenomenal skills.
The most renowned musicians in the country
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Drummer Wolfgang Reisinger is one of the most renowned musicians in the country and regularly collaborates with numerous international bands and musicians, such as Dave Liebman, Michel Godard, Enrico Rava, Marc Ducret or Steve Lacy. In the video below he can be heard with guitarist Andy Manndorff, who taught at the VMI for many years.
Interview with exceptional musician
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The former Falco guitarist, Conrad Schrenk, is demonstrably one of the most technically accomplished guitarists in the world and has been working at the VMI for more than two decades. In the following interview, he shows himself to be as humorous as he is virtuosic, and incidentally demonstrates some of his sensational guitar techniques.
Powerful authenticity of a soul diva
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The charismatic singer Betty Semper completed her musical apprenticeship in London and then taught for many years at the VMI. She is one of the most booked singers in the country, has worked in numerous bands and TV productions and impresses above all with her vocal power and powerful authenticity, as can also be seen in the following video.
Daily life at the VMI
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The VMI has always consisted of an extremely lively and well-connected community of numerous musicians and creative professionals who collaborate in a wide variety of ways and constantly produce new projects. In the following video, some of the teachers talk about their collaboration with students and give more information about their work.
Internationale Lehraufträge
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In addition to teaching, the VMI regularly organizes a wide variety of concerts, workshops, clinics, master classes, seminars and the like. These events can be attended by students and interested individuals, mostly free of charge, and offer the ideal opportunity to learn more about VMI. Below are some videos where VMI lecturers* invited to the Open Day in 2018.
Meanwhile, VMI hosts an "Open Day" throughout the year, where you can easily register as a guest student to attend all lectures on that day for a whole day, free of charge and without obligation.