History
Patric Oliver Hetzinger
Portrait
I was born in 1962 in Lahr, in the Black Forest area of Germany. I grew up in and around Lahr, Pforzheim, New Zealand, Karlsruhe, Freiburg, Southern France, Los Angeles, Southern California, and again Lahr.
I’m a percussionist/singer/musician, cajon-drum maker and percussion teacher, and have been building and playing cajons since 1988. Until 1990 I was the percussionist with Freiburg-based Flamenco group “Los Crotalos”, and traveled extensively during that time in France and Spain, playing, among others, with members of the Gipsy Kings.
In 1990 I moved to Los Angeles, USA. I lived there until 2007. From 1990 to 1992 I studied at the Grove School of Music.
Among my percussion teachers were Bob Fernandez, John Bergamo and Luis Conte. In Los Angeles I worked as a freelance musician in Jazz, Rock and Flamenco. I was the first cajon player ever in the LA Flamenco scene, and through the years I played with virtually all the important Flamenco artists on the American West Coast.
Tours brought me to other parts of the US, Japan, and parts of Europe. In the area of Jazz and Rock I was lucky to share the stage with musicians like Angel Figueroa (Herbie Hancock, Maxwell), Spanish entertainer Charo, Heavy Metal band “Tribe After Tribe”, Jazz veterans Riner Scivally and Isla Eckinger, LA House-DJ Sol, and many others.
I was the drummer/percussionist of the Spoken Word/HipHop band “Andthensome”. For Jennifer Lopez, I developed the rhythms and played cajon and palmas for the cajon-dance duet in her video of “Ain’t It Funny”.
I first built cajons for my own use in the late 1980’s when I began to play Flamenco and found out that I could not buy the instrument anywhere. After 10 years as a professional musician in Los Angeles I started popercussion in 1999, turning my old hobby into a part of my professional life.
My high-end cajons quickly found a place in the hearts of professional musicians in the US, Canada and Australia. They have been used in songs by artists as varied as Jennifer Lopez, Los Lobos, David Sylvian, Pink Martini, Lila Downs, Sara Bareilles, and many more.
In 2007 I moved back to Germany. I now live in Lahr, my hometown. In addition to building popercussion cajons I work as a teacher at the Lahr Music School, as a cajon/percussion workshop leader, and as a percussionist for bands and artists like Maeve Kelly (Singer-Songwriter), Modi Vivendi (Renaissance-Pop), and MadrugáFlamenca (Modern Flamenco).
Workshops/Gigs
09.04.2011 - GrooveYard Donauwörth
Cajon Workshop at Musikschule GrooveYard Donauwörth »
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10.04.2011 - Augsburg
Cajon Seminar at Instituts für elementare Musikerziehung.
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