About Me

A Filipino-American, born in Stuttgart Germany and raised in Hawaii, Chris Gabriel had spent his early years creating songs for family and friends. Chris spent his summers surfing and vividly remembers watching ocean waves crash and falling in love with the beach. Ever since his earliest days, he was fascinated by sound.

Chris left Hawaii in 1993 to attend Portland State University in Oregon. He studied music, philosophy, and language, as a student at the University. However, he could not escape the allure of the local music scene and quickly began playing in 2, 3, sometimes 4 bands. He began attending every jazz concert he could. Chris soon sold his truck to get enough money to buy a steel guitar. From classical and jazz to modern rock, Chris' love of music was uncontrollable. In 2001, he moved back to Stuttgart to deepen his roots, teaching and playing music throughout Europe at venues and festivals.

In 2003, Chris was excited to return Portland, where he could study with great musicians, and listen to their stories. "I became a student of life", he recalls. A year later, Chris married a high school sweetheart and long-time partner, Stephanie, and planted roots in Portland for good. Chris then began writing electronic music, and modern pop songs. He continued playing in groups as a solo artist, and as a sideman.

In 2011, he started his own music school called MusikHaus, teaching private lessons on ukulele, guitar, and lap steel and teaching at Irvington Elementary and the Multnomah Athletic Club (MAC), earning his niche in a vibrant and diverse city. He plays at several locations and has received several glowing reviews.

Chris is now working on a unique tuning for his pedal steel, and continues to improvise, play, record, compose and teach music to his children, Tristan and Hazel. "Chris' love of music is infectious,” said one fan at a recent gathering, "once you hear his work, you want to find everything he has done".