The life of Gerd Krause changed drastically one day when he was about ten years old. Up to that point he’d been a relatively “normal” ten year old in Vernon BC, Canada. Falling off his bicycle. Annoying his parents. Playing hockey badly (even for a ten year old).
It’s probably wrong to blame the neighbors. How could they possibly have known? They might have thought they were just being nice. Whatever the motivation, one day they decided to give the young kid next door a beat up old guitar that wasn’t being used anymore. It was a Silvertone. Practically unplayable and definitely untunable. That didn’t stop young Gerd from becoming obsessed with the thing. He started to spend his evenings teaching himself how to read and play music. So long to that last sparkle of hope for an NHL career.
Even at that tender age Gerd realized the folly of his obsession. As he got older he tried going to college and taking a sensible career path, but there it always was, sitting in some corner of the room, saying “play me, play me.” Not the same guitar, but a much nicer one by that time. Rock & Roll beat out differential equations in the end. So long to that last sparkle of hope for a sensible career path.
After finally giving up on the idea of ever having a relatively normal life, Gerd returned to school, this time taking two years of jazz studies at Malaspina College In Nanaimo (back when it was called that). Around the same time he started playing classical guitar in some of the local restaurants, and a few years later started playing with country bands in the local bars.
In 1994, Gerd relocated to Alberta, and thereafter spent many years touring western Canada with cover bands, doing solo acoustic shows, hosting open-mic nights, and generally hanging out in places of questionable repute.
Gerd’s real passion has moved towards acoustic fingerstyle guitar over the years and the emphasis has shifted back to playing solo, creating a full sound with just one guitar, one voice, and some foot stomping. Influenced by jazz, blues, traditional country, bluegrass, and ragtime, Gerd’s original songs cover all of these styles and then some. Bottleneck blues, Travis-picking, and walking bass swing are all fair game. This combination of diverse musical styles along with quirky and sometimes witty lyrics makes for some interesting and unusual songs.
Since 2008 Gerd has been living in the small town of Maple Creek, Saskatchewan, where he continues to play guitar and also pursue that ever elusive “normal” life.
