Dietmar Kastowsky - BASS

Dietmar Kastowsky

Born in 1962 in GERMANY as a resident of AUSTRIA, Dietmar Kastowsky at the age of four began to play the flute.Years later after some first "gigs", it was time to break up. Listening to the music of DEEP PURPLE, SLADE, STATUS QUO, etc. led to the conclusion, that there wasn`t too much need for that kind of whistling in 70s Rockmusic.

THE BASS then was reconized as an interesting instrument, when his uncle said: "Wow, she has a FENDER-Bass ...." while looking at the Cover of a SUZI QUATRO - LP.
At the age of 16 everybody played guitar and THE BASS just seemed to be an easier-to-play-version of that. :-)

After finishing highschool and a following study of economics, Kastowsky decided to live the life of a musician instead of sneaking around some officedesk. It was in the middle of the eighties, when audiences in Europe more and more got confronted with the music of bassplayers like MARK KING, STANLEY CLARKE, JACO PASTORIUS, etc. CHIC COREA came up with his terrific Electric Band ( that by the way was the first time when Kastowsky had accousticly contact with the sound of the "six-string-bass" played by JOHN PATITUCCI ).
That inspired, it was time to get more into the study of JAZZ, LATIN and all those other styles of music, to improve skills on both, the ELECTRIC-BASS and the ACCOUSTIC-BASS.
In 1992 „ Soundcheck“ (an important Music-Magazine in Germany), the „Musikmesse Frankfurt“ and „Warwick Bass Guitars“ managed a competition in search of the most ... whatever ... bassplayer of Germany/Austria.
Members of the jury: T.M. STEVENS (USA); JIMMY EARL (USA); JACK BRUCE (GB); WOLFGANG SCHMIDT (GER) and HELMUT HATTLER (GER).

The lucky winner was ... :-)

(See Gallery for a scan of the SOUNDCHECK Magazin from 1992 )

Since then Kastowsky is one of „the“ bass-guys ( on accoustic- and electric Bass) in Germany,Austria and Switzerland. He leads his own band „ The Kastowsky Quartett“ (formerly known as „Kastowsky`s Fusion Illusion“) and work(s)(ed) as a sideman for top-musicians like: James Morrison (Australia),Phillipe Catherine (Belgique), Ingrid Jensen (Kanada), John Etheridge (GB); Bill Ramsey (USA,Germany), Rita Moreno (USA), Bernard Purdie (USA), Francine Jordi (CH) and many others.