David Schlage was born in a small village in the Usambara Mountains in 1967. At the age of nine, he received his first violin lessons and in 1984, switched to the viola. From 1988 to 1992, he studied with Rainer Hoffman in Bremen and graduated in 1994 after completing his studies with Matthias Buchholz in Cologne. It was during an academy year at the Musiktheater im Revier in Gelsenkirchen that he began playing with Ensemble Resonanz. Since 1994, he has been a permanent member and has been active in the organisation of the ensemble’s outreach programmes. Additionally, he plays in different ensembles such as Das Neue Orchester Köln. He moved to Hamburg when Ensemble Resonanz relocated there and has been living in Glückstadt (Elbe) with his family since 2007.