Felix Wiegand on Building a Meaningful Life in Music
Backstage Wisdom Podcast • EP 1
Lessons on Success, Relationships and Lifelong Growth
What does it really mean to succeed as a musician? Is it sold-out tours, world-class stages and an impressive résumé – or is there something deeper that keeps us fulfilled long after the applause has faded?
In this episode of the Backstage Wisdom Podcast, Marco Hohner sits down with bassist Felix Wiegand to explore exactly these questions. Having studied both classical music and jazz, Felix has toured internationally with Dick Brave (Sasha) and recently performed alongside Robbie Williams. Yet our conversation is far less about famous names than it is about building a meaningful and sustainable life in music.
Together we explore why long-lasting relationships matter more than career milestones, how lifelong curiosity can keep us growing as artists, and why true fulfillment often begins beyond the stage. Whether you're an aspiring musician, a seasoned professional or simply someone searching for a healthier relationship with success, this conversation offers timeless insights into what it means to build a life—not just a career—in music.
🎧 Listen to the full conversation on the Backstage Wisdom Podcast. 🇩🇪 This episode is in German.
Key Takeaways
Success Alone Won't Sustain You
Playing major festivals, touring with well-known artists or reaching career milestones can be deeply rewarding—but they rarely provide lasting fulfillment on their own. A sustainable life in music begins when happiness isn't dependent on the next gig, the next tour or the next achievement.
Great Music Grows Through Great Relationships
Whether it's your band, your students or the people you meet on tour, music is ultimately built on trust, respect and genuine human connection. Strong relationships don't just make life better—they often make the music better, too.
Never Stop Growing
Curiosity doesn't have an expiration date. Felix returned to university in his fifties, only because he still wanted to learn. His story is a reminder that artistic growth begins wherever we're willing to remain open, curious and humble.
Deep Dive
Success Alone Isn't Enough
From the outside, Felix Wiegand's career looks like the kind of success many musicians dream about. He has toured internationally, performed alongside Robbie Williams, and built a career that spans classical music, jazz and rockabilly. Yet one of the most striking moments in our conversation on the Backstage Wisdom Podcast had nothing to do with famous stages or career highlights. Instead, it centered on a much deeper question: What actually creates a fulfilling life in music?
For many musicians, success becomes the benchmark by which everything else is measured. The next tour, a bigger audience, a prestigious collaboration or another career milestone can easily become the place where we expect fulfillment to finally arrive. The problem is that these moments, as exciting as they are, never last forever. The applause fades, the tour ends and everyday life quietly returns.
Felix experienced this firsthand. After the very sudden and remarkable success with Dick Brave, life eventually slowed down again. Looking back, he describes that transition as an important lesson. Building a sustainable life as a musician meant learning not to depend entirely on the extraordinary moments, but to create a life that remained meaningful long after they had passed. Rather than chasing the next peak, he gradually focused on building something far more stable: meaningful projects, trusted musical partnerships and a life that wasn't defined solely by music and professional success.
Perhaps that's one of the greatest challenges of a creative career. Success is exciting—but it is also temporary. If our identity depends entirely on external achievements, every setback feels deeply personal. A cancelled tour, a rejected application or a quieter season can suddenly feel like a judgment of our worth rather than a normal part of an artistic life.
Felix offers a refreshing alternative. Instead of making success the foundation of happiness, he sees it as something that grows naturally from a life built on curiosity, meaningful relationships and genuine joy in making music. The concerts still matter. The audience still matters. But they are no longer responsible for carrying the weight of his happiness.
Maybe that is the most liberating idea of all. A fulfilling life in music doesn't begin when everything goes according to plan. It begins when success becomes something we appreciate—rather than something we depend on.
Great Music Begins with Great Relationships
When people talk about a successful music career, they often focus on technical skill, talent or discipline. Rarely do they talk about relationships. Yet throughout our conversation on the Backstage Wisdom Podcast, Felix returns to one idea again and again: music is ultimately about people. Whether you're playing in a band, teaching students or spending weeks together on tour, the quality of those relationships shapes not only the experience of making music, but often the music itself.
Long-term collaborations don't happen by accident. They are built on trust, honest communication and mutual respect. Every musician brings different personalities, creative ideas and expectations into the rehearsal room. Disagreements are inevitable, but they don't have to become obstacles. In fact, Felix suggests that the strongest musical partnerships are often the ones where people feel safe enough to listen, challenge each other and grow together over time.
This perspective shifts the focus away from competition and towards collaboration. In an industry that often celebrates individual achievement, it's easy to believe that success depends on standing out. But music has always been a shared experience. A band is more than the sum of its individual musicians. When people genuinely enjoy working together, that connection becomes something audiences can hear and feel—even if they can't explain why.
The same principle extends far beyond the stage. Every creative career is shaped by the people who surround us: teachers who encourage us, colleagues who inspire us, friends who remind us who we are when things become difficult. These relationships provide something that no career milestone ever can—a sense of belonging.
Perhaps that's why Felix speaks less about famous stages and more about the people he has met along the way. Years from now, most musicians won't remember every concert they played. They'll remember the conversations after the show, the friendships built on countless hours of rehearsals and the feeling of creating something meaningful together. Success may open doors, but it's relationships that make the journey worth taking.
Growth Has No Expiration Date
One of the most inspiring moments between Marco and Felix comes almost in passing. After decades of performing professionally, Felix Wiegand made a decision that many people would never expect: he went back to university to pursue a master's degree in jazz. Not because he needed another qualification, and certainly not because his career depended on it. He did it for a much simpler reason – he was still curious. He felt there was more to discover, more to understand and more to express through his music.
In many professions, experience is often seen as the destination. Once we've reached a certain level, there's an unspoken expectation that we should already have the answers. Artists, however, live by different rules. Creativity doesn't thrive on certainty; it thrives on curiosity. The willingness to ask new questions, explore unfamiliar ideas and remain a beginner – even after years of experience – is often what keeps both the artist and the art alive.
It's easy to believe that certain opportunities belong to a particular stage of life. We tell ourselves we're too old to study, too established to be a beginner again or it´s too late to start something new. Yet those limits rarely come from reality. More often, they come from the stories we tell ourselves. Felix's journey is a reminder that growth isn't measured by age or career stage. It's measured by our willingness to keep learning.
This mindset reaches far beyond music. Every creative person faces moments when staying comfortable feels easier than staying curious. But comfort rarely leads to transformation. The most meaningful growth often begins the moment we're willing to step into uncertainty again – to ask questions instead of pretending we already know the answers.
Perhaps that's the most hopeful message of this conversation. A fulfilling life in music isn't about arriving at a final destination. It's about continuing to grow, staying open to new experiences and allowing ourselves to evolve throughout every season of life. Because in the end, the artists who keep learning are often the ones who keep finding joy – not only in their work, but in the journey itself.
Continue the Conversation
The best conversations don't end when the episode is over. They continue in the questions we ask ourselves.
1. How do you currently define success as a musician – and is that definition helping you build the life you truly want?
2. Who are the people who bring out the best in you, both as a musician and as a person?
3. What is something you've always wanted to learn, explore or create – but keep telling yourself it's "too late" to begin (could be another instrument, a sport, a language, ...)? What's one small step you could take this week?
Keep Exploring
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