Axel began playing at around 11 years of age with piano and church organ and started playing in school bands at the the same time.
In 2001 he acquired a bachelor of arts in musical sciences. His final thesis for the M.A. degree (The Hammond Organ: Sound and Construction) drew attention in german musicsoftware and hardware developer scene, such as emagic (now apple) and Doepfer. In his early career he played in several cover bands, like 'Catch The Rainbow' where he met the 'Helloween' drummer at that time Uli Kusch and Gamma Ray guitarist Henjo Richter. From early 2002 Axel played in Gamma Ray as a guest musician for several tours and single shows. In 2002 Axel joined Masterplan as part of the original line up.
In 2005 Axel also joined Beautiful Sin, the side project of his Masterplan bandmate Uli Kusch, and he performed as a guest musician on Nevermore's "This Godless Endeavor" in 2005 and Megadeth's 2007 album "United Abominations."
Besides his virtuoso live performances on the keys Axel is a successful writer, producer and arranger for songs, bands and solo artists. You can hear his music in countless commercials, tv-shows, and radioplays.
