Erik Bech - A Short Bio
Erik Ivan Bech (née Carlson) was born in San Francisco, California, U.S.A. on March 25, 1971 of Swedish-English and Cuban-German descent, and moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1974. In the 1980s, Erik visited family in Denmark often, and has been to other countries including Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Iceland and Jamaica. Erik holds both Canadian and American citizenship. In April 2003, Erik moved to Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Erik's musical talents were apparent at an early age, talents for which he credits his mother, a professional singer. At the age of ten years, Erik became a member of the International Society of Student Organists, where he reached the intermediate level, playing annual recitals and performing for festivals. In 1987 a chance encounter at a friend's house with an album called "The Magic of Zamfir" would change Erik's life forever. The album, one of many from the world-renowned Panflute virtuoso Gheorghe Zamfir, fascinated Erik and led to his desire to learn this difficult-to-master instrument. "Some teenagers were into rock stars and heavy metal, but I was all into the Panflute", Erik says, referring to his earliest studies, which involved intense observation and emulation of Zamfir's performance techniques.
During his initial studies, Erik played a small 12-tube Romanian Panflute (nai), but his desire for a larger instrument of higher quality eventually led to the purchase of his first "real" Panflute, a 28-tube instrument built by C. Popescu. Erik afterwards acquired other Panflutes, including one from the Toronto-based Canadian virtuoso Kevin Budd, who also aided Erik in the development of his playing technique and artistic approach to the Panflute. Although Erik has attended numerous Zamfir concerts, his dream was finally realized when he met the Maestro himself, Gheorghe Zamfir, in March 2001 (see photo). A professional accountant by trade, Erik is a director and treasurer of the World Pan Flute Association Inc., a non-profit organization promoting the panflute through offering scholarships and related services to panflute enthusiasts around the world.
Learn more about Erik's home in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada at his personal website.
Write an e-mail to Erik Bech at: erikbech@mac.com. Learn more about the pan flute at www.panflutejedi.com.