about

photo by Katharina Geling

Fabian Neubauer (*1994) is a musician, multi-instrumentalist, and sound artist active internationally at the intersection of experimental and improvised music, Free Jazz, Noise, electroacoustic music, performance art, and interdisciplinary practices.

Operating between acoustic and electronic sound, he explores a wide range of instruments and sound sources—including piano, drums, guitar, percussion, field recordings, samples, and electronic feedback systems. His work spans both free improvisation and conceptual approaches, treating music as an open, ever-evolving process.  Central to his practice is an approach shaped less by control than by intuition, physical play, and openness; by consciously embracing not knowing, he subverts routines and automatisms.

His artistic practice is characterized by an open approach to sound, instrumentation, and form. He questions traditional notions of the finished artwork and understands music as a dynamic, process-based phenomenon. Rather than reproducing fixed aesthetic or stylistic templates, he embraces ambiguity. Elements of chance, intuitive structures, and a sensitive handling of sonic and performative parameters play a central role in his work. He rejects artistic conformity as well as calculated provocation, viewing his work not as a finished product but as a continuous experiment. His practice resists rigid categorization, moving freely between improvised music, contemporary composition, noise, and electroacoustic sound art. His work reflects a critical engagement with musical conventions and

broader social and aesthetic questions. At the same time, playful curiosity, humor, and a deliberate naivety shape his artistic process. He pursues an identity defined not by boundaries, but by openness.

Fabian Neubauer has worked with numerous international artists, including Elliott Sharp, John Edwards, Caroline Kraabel, Kazuhisa Uchihashi, Korhan Erel, Kevin Shea, Matt Mottel, Leila Bordreuil, Hans Tammen, Sun Yhizou, Matthias Kaiser, Shuoxin Tan, Mats Gustafsson, Jun-Y Ciao, Le Quan Ninh, Ryan Carniaux, Felix Nussbaumer, Bastian Buddenbrock, Masayo Koketsu, Ryotaro Miyasaka, Phil Niblock, Mik Quantius, Gunda Gottschalk, Israel Flores Bravo, Sebastian Gramss, Jan Klare and many others.

Concert tours have taken him to various countries across Europe and Asia.  Fabian Neubauer has performed both solo and in numerous ensembles, and has collaborated with artists from dance and visual arts. He has collaborated with the avant-garde duo Talibam!, recognized figures in the New York City underground scene. He has been invited to many renowned international festivals, including Moers Festival and Fusion Festival. He is a recipient of the Istanbul Residency Award of the Kunststiftung NRW and winner of the Steinway Prize NRW. With the Düsseldorf Düsterboys, he received the German Record Critics’ Award for Nenn Mich Musik. 

Fabian Neubauer created music for dance and theater companies such as SZENE2WEI, POUR Ensemble, Folkwang Tanzstudio, Chikako Kaido’s IMA KOKO WATASHI, and Karada/Kriegskörper. Together with Luong/Neubauer/Liebhaber and filmmaker Franco Consales, he brought the audiovisual performance ALCHEMY to international stages in Italy, the UK, and Germany.  Beyond live performances, Neubauer’s discography spans numerous albums on various labels, and he remains active across a broad spectrum of projects. Other ensembles he has worked with include e:ga‘l, KNYNS, Nasssau, Glossa, The Dorf, the Wuppertal Improvisation Orchestra, the London Improvisers Orchestra, and GLIS GLIS. He is also the organist of the psychedelic folk band The Düsseldorf Düsterboys.

He is curator of Solips, an interdisciplinary performance space in Wuppertal-Vohwinkel dedicated to experimental and process-oriented artistic practices with a strong international network of artists and collaborators. The program includes curated events as well as open formats that foster exchange between artists and audiences.

He also curates the “Off-Grid” series at ORT in Wuppertal, focusing on experimental and improvised music and performance.

self-portrait