He is laureate of international competitions; thus he won guitar competitions in Freiburg (1987), Mettmann (1989) and Bonn (German Music Competition 1992) and was finalist of the Concours International of Radio France in Paris (1991). In guitar duo with Pia Grees he was awarded with the 2. prize at the duo competition in Montélimar, 1993 with the sponsorship prize of the European economy and 1994 with a scholarship of the Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg. In this duo, soloistic (“Musik aus Renaissance und Moderne”) as well as with tenor Hans Jörg Mammel and the “Take Four Guitar Quartet” highly acclaimed CDs were released (lastly “Tango Perpetuel” 2005/12 and 2013/14 “Orient Express”). The release of his solo-recording of Bach’s three violin sonatas in his own transcription for guitar came out in 2011, the CD „Barock & Tango“ in duo „Misteriosa Vida“ with Sarah Immer (violin) in 2017.
Matthias Kläger has been supported by the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes and accepted as a scholar of the German Music Competition in the national selection “Konzerte Junger Künstler”. Since then he regularly gives concerts as a soloist and in miscellaneous chamber music formations both nationally and internationally, at present mainly with his Bach program, in the “Guitarra a Seis” sextet and the “Duo Misteriosa Vida”.
From 1997-2011, Matthias Kläger lead a major class for artistic and pedagogic training for the subject guitar at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich. In 2012/13 he supervised a guitar class at the Musikhochschule Würzburg. Furthermore he is a lecturer of multiple seminars, juror, among others, for the national and statewide competition “Jugend Musiziert”, organizer of festivals and workshops and is active in the Musikleitung des Bundes Deutscher Zupfmusiker Baden-Württemberg.
Currently Matthias Kläger is active as a teacher and subject coordinator for guitar at the MKZ Musikschule Konservatorium Zürich and since 2014 a lecturer for guitar at the Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg.