is professor for oboe at the University of Music, Drama and Media in Hannover/Germany. And oboist of the renowned Linos Ensemble.
Born in Koblenz, in 1977, Kai studied first at the Luxemburg Conservatoire with Norbert Mattern. He received first prize of the federal competition “Jugend musiziert” three times, in 1991, 1993 and in 1995 and was pre College student with Professor Ingo Goritzki. After passing his A-level exams, he started studying with Professor Christian Wetzel in the Highschool of Music and Drama “Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy” in Leipzig. He received scholarships from the Foundation „Studienstiftung des deutsche Volkes”, the Villa Musica and the Richard Wagner Society.
He played in the EUYO for two years, in 1998 and 1999. In 1999, he got the co- principal oboe position in the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz and then he became the principal oboe of the Bamberger Symphonikern – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie in 2003. Kai is a keen chamber musician and performed with Frank-Peter Zimmermann, Christian Zacharias, Christoph Eschenbach and the wind ensemble Sabine Meyer. In 2005, 2006 and in 2007, he was the principal oboe of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, directed by Claudio Abbado. Until 2018 he was the principal oboe of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and played with Bernard Haitink and Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
Since 2014 he has been named as professor for oboe at the Highschool for Music in Düsseldorf, in 2018 he has started to teach as a professor at the University for Music, Drama and Media in Hannover. He gives masterclasses all over the world.
Kai is happy to work with interested oboists and speaks English and German.
