“David Helbock is a musician to watch. […] An impeccable pianist with a clear, crisp touch.”
Jazzwise (GB)

David Helbock, born in 1984 in Vorarlberg, Austria, began playing the piano at the age of six. After several years of piano lessons at the Feldkirch Music School and at the Jazz Seminar Dornbirn, he transferred to the Feldkirch Conservatory in 1998 to study classical piano under the guidance of Prof. Ferenc Bognar, where he graduated with honors in concert piano in 2005. In addition, from 2000 to 2008, David Helbock received instruction from New York jazz pianist Peter Madsen (known for his work with Stan Getz, Joe Lovano, Fred Wesley, and others), who became his teacher, mentor, and friend. They continue to play together in Madsen's ensemble "Collective of Improvising Artists (CIA)" and founded the joint project "Austrian Syndicate" in 2023.

During this time, David Helbock also received instruction from Fuat Kent (a student of the renowned contemporary composer George Crumb) and developed his distinctive "Inside Piano" playing style.

David Helbock is a prize winner of the world's largest jazz piano solo competition at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland in 2007 and 2010, including wining the Audience Award. In 2011, he was awarded the "Outstanding Artist Award," Austria's most prestigious artistic grant.

Throughout his career as a musician, David Helbock has been actively composing. In addition to commissioned compositions for string orchestras, chamber music, choirs, and big bands, he completed a major "yearly composition project," in which he composed a new piece every day for a year. In early 2010, he published the "Personal Realbook," containing over 600 pages of music. In 2018, he was awarded the Composition State Scholarship by the Austrian federal government.

David Helbock has released nearly 25 albums under his own name as a leader, including five on the Berlin-based label Traumton (from 2010 to 2015). Since 2016, he has been an exclusive artist with the renowned Munich-based label "ACT-Music," with six albums released to date. His debut release with ACT-Music, "Into the Mystic" in 2016, was nominated for the German "Echo Jazz" award. In 2018, he released the second album, "Random/Control," and in 2019, a solo piano album titled "Playing John Williams."

David Helbock has collaborated with internationally renowned jazz musicians, including a trio album with German jazz musicians Sebastian Studnitzky and Arne Jansen in 2021, and a duo album with French star singer Camille Bertault in 2022.

On the quintet album "Austrian Syndicate," featuring his former teacher Peter Madsen on piano, David Helbock exclusively plays keyboards and synthesizers. Additionally, guest appearances include Dhafer Youssef, Fred Wesley, Lakecia Benjamin, Maria João and Alex Acuña.

Hermeto Pascoal, the Brazilian music legend, was so impressed with David Helbock's album "Think of Two"(2014) with the ensemble "Random/Control" that he composed and recorded a piece specifically for the album in Brazil. Furthermore, David Helbock performed as a soloist with Michael Mantler's "Jazz Composer's Orchestra" in 2014, 2016, 2021 & 2023 participating in several album productions for the prestigious ECM label, where he took on the piano part originally performed by Cecil Taylor on Mantler's legendary 1968 recording.

David Helbock's albums have featured over 100 original compositions, performed worldwide.

David Helbock has performed concerts with his own ensembles in countries such as the USA, Canada, Mexico, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Mongolia, South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Japan, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, Senegal, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, Israel, Iran, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Australia, and all throughout Europe.

He has showcased his music at renowned festivals, including the Montreux Jazz Festival, Java Jazz Festival Jakarta, Jarasum Jazz Festival Seoul, Melbourne Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Eurojazz Festival Mexico City, Providencia Jazz Festival Santiago de Chile, all major jazz festivals in Canada (Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa), Jazzaldia San Sebastián, Jazzwochen Burghausen, Jazzbaltica, Moers Festival, Jazzfestival Saalfelden (commissioned composition and opening performance in 2013), to name just a few.

 

Awards

  • several 1st Prize Winner - Youthcompetition "Prima la Musica"

  • 2001 "Bösendorfer-Scholarship" Winner

  • 2002 Talent-Competition Winner with the band "Tat-twam-asi"

  • 2006 Winner of the international Competition "New Generation" in Straubing (GER)

  • 2006 CD Release in the Series Jazzthing Next Generation with the HDV Trio

  • 2007 Podiumsprize Liechtenstein

  • 2007 Prizewinner at the world biggest Jazz-piano-solo competition in Montreux

  • 2010 Prizewinner at the same competition and in addition the "Audienceprize"

  • 2011 Outstanding Artist Award of Austria

  • 2014 Invitation to the BMW-World Jazzaward

  • 2015 IBK Prize (International Bodensee Conference)

  • 2018 State-Scholarship for Composition from Austria

  • 2020 Musik Plus “Rotary Club” Prize with Random/Control

  • 2021 “Creative Music Award” - Konzertverein Bodensee

Releases

  • 1998 "Happiness" - Eigenproduktion

  • 2003 "Emotions" - Label Gramola Wien

  • 2004 "Transformation" - Label Gramola Wien

  • 2006 "Celebrating modern Genius" - Label Doublemoon Records Köln

  • 2007 "Time" - Label YVP Music Ulm

  • 2008 "CIA DVD - Sunology" - CIA

  • 2008 "All In" - Label Doublemoon Records Köln

  • 2010 "CIA - Thousand Miles Journey" - CIA

  • 2010 "David Helbock´s Random/Control" - Traumton Records Berlin

  • 2010 "My Personal Realbook" - 600 pages of compositions

  • 2011 „Hellhound & Bird“ - Duo mit Alfred Vogel - Boomslang Records

  • 2011 "Diagonal" - Label Traumton Records Berlin

  • 2012 "Purple" - Label Traumton Records Berlin

  • 2014 "Think of Two" - Label Traumton Records Berlin

  • 2014 "Jazz Composer´s Orchestra Update" - Michael Mantler - ECM Records

  • 2014 "What´s Next? I don’t know" with L. Raab - Session Work

  • 2015 "Aural Colors" - Label Traumton Records Berlin

  • 2015 "Mistura" - Label Unit Records

  • 2016 "Into the Mystic" - Label ACT Music

  • 2017 "Comment C’est" with Michael Mantler - Label ECM Records

  • 2018 "Tour d´Horizon" - Label ACT Music

  • 2019 "Playing John Williams" - Label ACT Music

  • 2019 "Utopian Spirit" - Raab/Helbock Duo, Tage der Utopie, Eigenverlag

  • 2021 "Coda" Orchestra Suites, Label ECM (mit Michael Mantler)

  • 2021 "The New Cool" - Label ACT Music

  • 2022 "Playground" - Label ACT Music

  • 2023 „Austrian Syndicate“ - Label ACT Music

Activities

  • Touring and recording with different Projects as a leader in countries like the like the USA, Canada, Mexico, Russia, Kasachstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Mongolia, Korea, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Japan, Israel, Turkey, Iran, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenia, Senegal, Marokko, Egypt, Tunisia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Australia and all over Europe.

  • Playing on festivals like Traumzeit Duisburg, Jazzbaltica, Jazzwochen Burghausen, Jazzfestival Münster, Jazzfestival Saalfelden, Jazzfest Rochester, Jazzaldia San Sebastián, Jazzfestival Montréal, Jazz d ́or Strasbourg, Jazzfestival Montreux, Jazzfestival St.Louis, Java Jazzfestival, Providencia Jazzfestival Chile, Eurojazzfestival Mexiko, Kuala Lumpur Jazzfestival, Melbourne Jazzfestival, Jarasum Jazzfestival and many more.

  • Several compositions for String-Ensembles, Brass-Ensembles, Big Band, Choir and more. In April 2010 Release of his Personal Realbook with more than 600 pages of music, for which David Helbock composed one tune every day for a whole year.

 
 

A litte television-portrait from 2023:

A little television-portrait from 2012: