Conversations with Stefan Dresler

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stefan Dresler.

Hi Stefan, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started playing music in my home country Austria when I was 6 years old and I haven’t stopped since! I got introduced to music very early as my parents were music fans and my brother a musician himself. The music scene in Austria isn’t huge, but the standard of musicianship is incredibly high, and there’s a strong emphasis on detail and craft. That environment made for a great community to grow up in as a young musician. When I was 19 I moved to the US and started studying at Berklee College of Music in Boston which led me to meet lots of inspiring musicians and teachers. My time on the East Coast had a big impact on me. After studying and living in Boston for 4 years I ended up moving to LA. It has been great so far and the creative scene here is very inspiring to say the least!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There will always be ups and downs in life, but I do my best to learn something from my struggles. I lost my mother right before I moved to the US, which gave me a very different outlook on life and put a lot of things in perspective. It was certainly not easy moving to a foreign country without knowing anyone there or being familiar with the social infrastructure, but it has been a great journey full of valuable lessons! As a musician, you often have to stand up for yourself, carve out your own path, and stay true to your vision. That process has really shaped who I am and continues to strengthen my belief in myself.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have always loved performing and sharing music live, whether on stage or in the studio, it’s been the heart of my journey in the music world. I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with many incredible artists and musicians who continue to inspire and push me to grow in my craft. A recent highlight was performing with the renowned Hammond organist Raphael Wressnig, whose career has long inspired me, not least because of our shared Austrian roots and his impressive trajectory across the United States. In addition to performing live and working as a session musician, I deeply enjoy writing and producing music for a range of projects. One of my recent ventures was contributing to the score for the theatre production Die Unendliche Geschichte, which premiered this year at the Luisenburg Festspiele in Germany. The score was composed by the brilliant Julius von Maldeghem, and it was an honor to be part of such a creative and collaborative effort.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I picked up a book called Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell at LAX before a flight a couple of months ago. I didn’t know what it was about, or even who Malcolm Gladwell was, but after skimming through a few pages, it caught my interest. I ended up becoming deeply invested in it and learned a lot about communication and the many challenges that come with it. There’s so much more to communication than we usually realize, including countless things we might not even be aware of.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stefandresler.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.esler/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@stefdresler