Markus Maichel
(piano & keyboards)


Date of birth?
The year Genesis released „A Trick Of The Tail“
When did you start making music?
Started my classical piano training when I was 7. Got increasingly tired of playing classical music so I stopped that when I was 18.
Any hidden talents?
None you want to know of ;-)
What was your first band?
A school band that lasted like 4 weeks, with me on piano, MB of Dante on bass and a certain Roland on drums – hence the incredibly creative name MaRoMa (d´oh!…). We soon discovered that the music was every bit as crappy as the name, so we just called it a day…
Did you / do you play in other bands besides Dante?
Most recently: Constantine (until February 2009)
What do you like to do when you get time away from Dante?
I am really into poetry, and I am a big movie fan.
Are there any other musical projects you are / were involved in?
La Mer, w/Maurizio Scafidi (unnamed yet), Trilogy
What are your favourite bands?
Dream Theater, Spocks Beard (w/Neal Morse), Pink Floyd, The Beatles
What was the best concert you saw?
Neal Morse in Aschaffenburg, Germany, 2007, Sola Scriptura Tour
Which band / musician have you never seen but really long to do so?
Led Zeppelin
Which band would you most like to play / tour with?
Any band with either Jordan Rudess or Neal Morse (or both!)
Who are your favourite musicians?
Jordan Rudess, Neal Morse
Who do you think are the best musicians
on your respective instrument?
Jordan Rudess, Keith Emerson, Jon Lord
What are your favourite songs of all time?
  • Stranger In Your Soul (Transatlantic)
  • Butterfly (Psychotic Waltz)
  • At The End Of The Day (Spocks Beard)
  • Octavarium (Dream Theater)
  • A Change Of Seasons (Dream Theater)
  • The Great Gig In The Sky (Pink Floyd)
  • Firth Of Fifth (Genesis)
  • Believe (Savatage)
  • The Battle Of Evermore (Led Zeppelin)
  • Child In Time (Deep Purple)
What do you think are the best / most important / albums of all time?
  • Abbey Road (The Beatles)
  • Bridge Across Forever (Transatlantic)
  • Dark Side Of The Moon (Pink Floyd)
  • Scenes From A Memory (Dream Theater)
  • A Social Grace (Psychotic Waltz)
  • Close To The Edge (Yes)
  • Selling England By The Pound (Genesis)
  • Sola Scriptura (Neal Morse)
  • In Absentia (Porcupine Tree)
  • Lateralus (Tool)
What is your favourite DanteSong?
The Giving / The Taking
What was the funniest / most embarrassing thing that ever happened while making music?
I have a certain tendency to double-step on my program change pedal just when “Not Like Myself” gets to the piano / vocal part. Instead of the mellow piano sound the highly distorted, monophonic synth sound that comes right after it is played. This usually ends in me panically trying to switch back to the piano sound and the drummer cracking up laughing!