Alex Holzwarth

Last updated
Alex Holzwarth
Birth nameAlex Holzwarth
Born (1968-10-04) 4 October 1968 (age 50)
Landshut, West Germany
(now Germany)
Genres
Occupation(s) Musician
Instruments Drums
Years active1993–present
Associated acts

Alex Holzwarth (born 4 October 1968) is a professional drummer, former member of Italian symphonic power metal band Rhapsody of Fire. He is the brother of bass guitarist Oliver Holzwarth.

Drummer percussionist who creates and accompanies music using drums

A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums.

Italy republic in Southern Europe

Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern and Western Europe. Located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and the enclaved microstates San Marino and Vatican City. Italy covers an area of 301,340 km2 (116,350 sq mi) and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. With around 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth-most populous EU member state and the most populous country in Southern Europe.

Rhapsody of Fire Italian band

Rhapsody of Fire is an Italian symphonic power metal band formed by Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli, widely seen as a pioneer of the symphonic power metal subgenre.

Biography

Alex Holzwarth was born in Landshut, West Germany. He started playing drums at the age of ten. The first instrument that he bought was a Troyan Drum with Paiste hi-hats. His first drumming teacher was Seppl Niemeyer.

Landshut Place in Bavaria, Germany

Landshut is a town in Bavaria in the south-east of Germany. Situated on the banks of the River Isar, Landshut is the capital of Lower Bavaria, one of the seven administrative regions of the Free State of Bavaria. It is also the seat of the surrounding district, and has a population of more than 70,000. Landshut is the largest city in Lower Bavaria, followed by Passau and Straubing, and Eastern Bavaria's second biggest city.

West Germany Federal Republic of Germany in the years 1949–1990

West Germany is the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany in the period between its creation on 23 May 1949 and German reunification on 3 October 1990. During this Cold War era, NATO-aligned West Germany and Warsaw Pact-aligned East Germany were divided by the Inner German border. After 1961 West Berlin was physically separated from East Berlin as well as from East Germany by the Berlin Wall. This situation ended when East Germany was dissolved and split into five states, which then joined the ten states of the Federal Republic of Germany along with the reunified city-state of Berlin. With the reunification of West and East Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany, enlarged now to sixteen states, became known simply as "Germany". This period is referred to as the Bonn Republic by historians, alluding to the interwar Weimar Republic and the post-reunification Berlin Republic.

Paiste company

Paiste is a Swiss-based Estonian manufacturer and designer of cymbals. It is the world's third largest manufacturer of cymbals, gongs, and metal percussion. Paiste is an Estonian and Finnish word that means "shine". Their eponymous sunrise can be seen in the logos for their 2002 line and their Twenty line.

In 2000, he joined Italian symphonic/power metal band Rhapsody Of Fire (that time still known as Rhapsody) with the release of Dawn of Victory , succeeding Daniele Carbonera. After the departure of Luca Turilli he has taken part also in his new project Luca Turilli's Rhapsody and played on its first album Ascending to Infinity , but left them in 2012 to focus on Rhapsody of Fire. On 9 October 2016 he has announced his departure from the band "to pursue other projects to work on". From November 2016 to March 2018, he joined Turilli and his former bandmates for Rhapsody's 20th Anniversary Farewell Tour. In December 2018, he was announced as the drummer for Turilli and Lione's new band Turilli / Lione Rhapsody.

Symphonic metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music which combines the heavy drums and guitars of metal with different elements of orchestral classical music, such as symphonic instruments, choirs and sometimes a full orchestra. Keyboards reminiscent of power metal are also sometimes featured.

Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contrast with the heaviness and dissonance prevalent for example in extreme metal. Power metal bands usually have anthem-like songs with fantasy-based subject matter and strong choruses, thus creating a theatrical, dramatic and emotionally "powerful" sound. The term was first used in the middle of the 1980s and refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a later more widespread and popular style based in Europe, South America and Japan, with a lighter, more melodic sound and frequent use of keyboards.

<i>Dawn of Victory</i> album by Rhapsody of Fire

Dawn of Victory is the third studio album released by Rhapsody in 2000. Like the previous albums, it centers on the story of Algalord and The Emerald Sword Saga. It was produced and engineered by Sascha Paeth and Miro. It is also the first album to feature drummer Alex Holzwarth.

In 2001, Alex was a session drummer for Tobias Sammet's symphonic/power metal opera Avantasia. The Metal Opera features many musicians from the power metal scene, but Holzwarth is credited for all drums in the first two Avantasia releases (with the exception of track 10 on The Metal Opera Part II ). He also served as session drummer for several songs on Avantasia albums The Wicked Symphony and Angel of Babylon (released in April 2010).

Tobias Sammet German musician

Tobias Sammet is a German musician, singer, songwriter and music producer best known for being the founder of the metal opera project Avantasia and singer and primary songwriter of the power metal band Edguy.

Avantasia German power metal band

Avantasia is a German supergroup metal opera project created by Tobias Sammet, vocalist of the band Edguy. It has been characterized as a rock opera, as it features the contributions of various vocalists and musicians and it consists of concept albums. The name is a portmanteau of the words "avalon" and "fantasia" ("fantasy") and describes "a world beyond human imagination".

<i>The Metal Opera</i> album by Avantasia

The Metal Opera is the first full-length album by Tobias Sammet's supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a rock opera, and further information on the story can be found here. The album is followed by the sequel The Metal Opera Part II.

He played with his brother in many bands together, among them the German progressive metal band Sieges Even (until the band's separation in 2008), Paradox, but also Rhapsody Of Fire.

Germany Federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe

Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central and Western Europe, lying between the Baltic and North Seas to the north, and the Alps to the south. It borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France to the southwest, and Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands to the west.

Progressive metal is a fusion genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock that combines the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral or "pseudo-classical" compositions of the latter.

Sieges Even was a progressive metal band from Munich, Germany. The band was originally formed under the name Sodom in the early 1980s, released their first demo in 1983, and adopted the name Sieges Even in 1985.

Another notable features as a touring or session musician include Angra, Dol Ammad, Looking-Glass-Self, Hexfire and Pergana.

Angra (band) Brazilian power metal band

Angra is a Brazilian heavy metal band formed in 1991 that has gone through some line-up changes since its foundation. They have released eight regular studio albums, five EPs and three live CD/DVDs to date. Led by Rafael Bittencourt, the band has gained a degree of popularity in Japan and Europe.

Dol Ammad is a heavy metal band formed in 2000 by Greek keyboard player Thanasis Lightbridge. Dol Ammad is characterizeded with instrumentation which layers conventional metal instrumentation, synthesizers, and the vocal support of a fourteen-member four-part choir. Lightbridge describes his music as "electronica art metal" and cites electronic music pioneers Jean Michel Jarre and Vangelis as key influences. The band derives its name from a fuel refinery in the computer game Descent 3.


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