With their music, playing the accordion, they have already gained a lot in their young lives, the two 17-year-old boys Thomas Haindl and Severin Müller. Now they are facing what is probably their biggest challenge in this field so far: the national competition of "Jugend musiziert" in Zwickau, Saxony, on the Tuesday after Pentecost. There they meet masters of their craft from all over Germany.
Bockhorn – They recently won first prize in the accordion chamber music category, and they are already one of the best duos with this instrument. Müller and Haindl actually grew up like siblings, are related through their mothers, Gabriele Haindl and Lisa Müller-Haindl, and have known each other since birth. They live in the same place, in Hecken in the municipality of Bockhorn, and attended the same primary school. And at the age of six, they decided to play the accordion after a so-called instrument performance concert at the Erding District Music School.
"I added the diatonic accordion in second grade," Severin reveals, his cousin Thomas took a liking to a huge instrument, the double bass, in fourth grade.
Music was practically in their cradle: mother Gabriele has been playing the violin since childhood, her other two children, Lisa (21) and Johannes (23), are virtuoso violin and piano or trumpet and accordion. Severin's sister Mirjam (19) is also a master violinist.
As far as competition is concerned, Thomas and Severin have taken a very consistent path. Guided and motivated again and again by their music teacher Michael Riedmaier, they have diligently climbed the performance podium. They have successfully mastered one level after the other at the national competition "Jugend musiziert" with their "Ziach", as the accordion is popularly called, from individual successes to the regional to the state competition, which they recently won in their class in Passau (we reported).
Even at the tender age of nine, they faced a critical jury and took part in the German Accordion Music Prize several times, "and most of the time we won something," the two boys comment with a wink.
Do they like to rehearse? "Every now and then you need gentle pressure from outside, from our teacher or from the family," they admit. But when they sit at their instrument, an eight-kilogram accordion from Italy, when their fingers fly over the many keys and buttons, then – at least for outsiders – the stress of rehearsals seems to have evaporated, then the passion for their music prevails.
At the same time, they have completely different topics on their minds: Thomas Haindl is training to become an IT specialist, Severin Müller is about to take the last oral exams of his Abitur at the Anne-Frank-Gymnasium. "After that, I'll start an apprenticeship as an automotive mechatronics technician and already have a job at a large automotive company." In addition, both play football enthusiastically at SC Kirchasch, both like to ski with their alpine skis. So boredom is a foreign word to them.
But first of all, it is important for them to concentrate on the national competition in Saxony. "We're going there without any concrete expectations, knowing full well that it's going to be difficult. We are Bavarian champions in our age group and also the only accordion team there, but a lot can happen in competition." In any case, they can fully rely on each other, "we already recognize each other's mood by the facial expressions," they give an insight into their innermost being. Perhaps this is one of the great guarantors of their success.
When they listen to music privately, they don't set themselves any limits, "we record everything that is played". Their teacher is also open to new things and has already intoned melodies by AC/DC or Michael Jackson with them. But this belongs to the subject of the musical freestyle, for the time being their "duty" is due, strictly according to notes and presumably also strictly evaluated. In any case, their fans are keeping their fingers crossed for them, and they always want to celebrate something afterwards – regardless of whether they have made it to a title or not.
