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Jacques Demierre, piano, spinet [CH]
Urs Leimgruber, soprano saxophone [CH]
Thomas Lehn, analog synthesizer [D]
The trio of Urs Leimgruber, Jacques Demierre and Thomas Lehn continues the work of the quartet that, with bassist Barre Phillips, explored the art of free improvisation to the point of near inaudibility. Without Phillips' freely swinging, Zen-like bass, the music becomes even more ethereal, more spiritual, yet also clearer and remarkably transparent.
The three musicians move with the concentration and daring of the most intrepid free climbers on a rock face, traversing routes not recorded in any app. How they achieve this, what it looks and feels like up there, how each of them contributes precisely what is necessary or surprising to keep the music captivating: this proves not only to be a challenge, but also, again and again, a delight for the listener.
Sound by sound, the listener becomes part of the process themselves in these musical imaginings. The sophisticated sound art, the dynamic range, and the spatial architecture of this trio are unique.
This concert is part of a tour supported by the two foundations Pro Helvetia and FONDATION SUISA.
Location: Steinway-Haus, Rubinstein-Saal,
Landsberger Straße 336 (Rückgebäude),
80687 München
Entrance fee: 20 Euro, members of Offene Ohren e.V. 15 Euro, free admission up to 21 years (inclusive)
The box office opens at approximately 7:30 p.m.
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Toshimaru Nakamura, no-input mixing board [Japan]
Bryan Eubanks, saxophone, electronics [USA/D]
Gert-Jan Prins, percussion, electronics [NL]
Tetuzi Akiyama, guitar [Japan]
The international collaboration of Tetuzi Akiyama, Bryan Eubanks, Gert-Jan Prins and Toshimaru Nakamura comes together for the first time for a small European tour in 2026. Together, these musicians will fuse free improvisation, noise, experimental electronics and the uncategorizable in a fresh and vibrant approach to group playing and spontaneous music creation, informed by decades of experience in other contexts and collaborative projects.
This hard-hitting electro-acoustic quartet will undertake its first tour together in a series of 11 concerts in May 2026, following the release of its debut CD Spring on Japan's Meena label in 2025.
Both Toshimaru Nakamura and Tetuzi Akiyama began their musical careers in earnest in the 1990s. Today, both tour worldwide each year, have a long list of releases, and count among Japan's leading improvisers.
Toshimaru Nakamura constructs sound with the instrument he calls the no-input mixing board, which creates feedback through the irregular hard-wiring of an analogue audio mixer.
Guitarist Tetuzi Akiyama plays either acoustic or electric guitar in highly original performances ranging from lyrical to noisy.
Gert-Jan Prins focuses on the sonic and musical qualities of electronic noise and percussion and investigates their relationship with the visual. Although he began his career as a drummer, his works include performances, sound-installations, compositions, electronic circuits and collaborations with other musicians, visual artists, composers, and dancers.
Synthesist and saxophone player Bryan Eubanks has developed his music through solo work and collaboration since 1999 and has participated in many short- and long-term projects. He remains continually active in a variety of contexts: improvisation; composing electronic and acoustic works for small ensembles, solo instruments, computers and electronics; organising and curating concerts for other artists; and building electronic instruments.
This concert is also made possible by the Federal Culture Prize Applaus, which was awarded to Offene Ohren e.V. in November 2025.
Location: MUG – Munich Underground at Einstein Kultur
Entrance fee: 20 Euro, members of Offene Ohren e.V. 15 Euro, free admission up to 21 years (inclusive)
The box office opens at approximately 7:30 p.m.
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Tatsuya Yoshida, drums [Japan]
Risa Takeda, piano, synthesizer [Japan]
This is a much-acclaimed improvisation duo from Tokyo. Consisting of Tatsuya Yoshida, a significant drummer in the avant-prog scene, and Risa Takeda, a pianist and keyboard player who is currently attracting considerable attention in Tokyo's improv scene, the duo is touring Europe for the first time.
Together, they create a unique sonic world shaped by compelling contrasts and harmonies unfolding at breathtaking speed. Their highly structured and highly improvised performance moves freely between classical music, contemporary music, progressive rock and jazz rock. Although the duo consists of only two musicians, they generate the sonic density and impact of a full band.
Risa Takeda was born in Hokkaido and began studying classical piano at the age of three. While at university, she also played drums. In 2011 she moved to Tokyo and, alongside performing with various bands, began giving solo performances from 2016 onwards.
She has released three albums on which she composed, arranged, performed and recorded all the material herself. The result is a multi-layered musical work featuring complex melodies, harmonies, rhythms and sound sequences, realised by the respective ensembles with both freedom and great precision.
In live performances she has performed with Akira Sakata, Tatsuya Yoshida, Seiichi Yamamoto, Tadahiko Yokogawa, Keiichi Suzuki and Mani Neumeier, continually expanding her musical range.
Tatsuya Yoshida is regarded as a major drummer, composer and improviser within the Japanese avant-garde music scene. He was already performing in Tokyo live clubs in the early 1980s. He has a powerful, polyrhythmic and fast-paced playing style that often uses odd time signatures.
The group Ruins, which he founded in 1985, gained international recognition for its distinctive sound, combining the explosive energy of its solid rhythm section with vocals in Yoshida’s native language.
Since the 1990s he has formed bands based on different concepts, such as Koenji Hyakkei, Korekyojin, Zubizuba, and Akaten, composing most of their repertoire himself. He has been playing with musicians such as John Zorn, Bill Laswell, Derek Bailey, Keiji Haino and Otomo Yoshihide.
In recent years he has focused on improvised music and has also collaborated with jazz musicians such as Satoko Fujii. He has released more than 100 recordings on various labels in Japan and abroad.
Location: MUG – Munich Underground at Einstein Kultur
Entrance fee: 20 Euro, members of Offene Ohren e.V. 15 Euro, free admission up to 21 years (inclusive)
The box office opens at approximately 7:30 p.m.
Camila Nebbia, saxophone [Argentinien/D]
Chris Corsano, drums [USA]
For the first time on our stage at MUG – Munich Underground at Einstein Kultur:
Following her impressive performance at our anniversary festival Parallel Universe 2025, Camila Nebbia, a rapidly rising star of the free jazz scene, now returns to Offene Ohren e.V. for a second visit.
Originally from Buenos Aires, she now lives in Berlin. Passionately dedicated to the tenor saxophone, Camila Nebbia received the 2026 German Jazz Prize in the reeds category on 26 April 2026.
We already had the pleasure of hearing the New York drummer and percussionist Chris Corsano at MUG a year ago, when he played there with John Butcher and Flo Stoffner.
Camila Nebbia and Chris Corsano, both adventurous improvisers, come together in a duo that thrives on raw energy, intensity, and unrestrained exploration. Their music navigates the intersections of texture, melody, and noise, forging dynamic and expressive sound worlds that push the boundaries of sound and form.
Their debut album, Six or Seven Ways Towards Becoming Undone (Relative Pitch Records, 2026), will be presented on a European release tour.
Location: MUG – Munich Underground at Einstein Kultur
Entrance fee: 20 Euro, members of Offene Ohren e.V. 15 Euro, free admission up to 21 years (inclusive)
The box office opens at approximately 7:30 p.m.
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Izumi Kimura, piano [Japan/CH]
Barry Guy, bass [GB/CH]
Gerry Hemingway, drums [USA/CH]
Foto © Cormac Larkin
When Izumi Kimura encountered the music of Barry Guy and Gerry Hemingway, two leading figures in the contemporary and improvised music scene, she immediately felt compelled to reach out to them.
After performing as duos in 2016, the three musicians met for a residency at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Monaghan, Ireland. Their debut album, Illuminated Silence, was released in 2019. A short documentary about the trio and the making of Illuminated Silence is available on YouTube.
Since then, the trio has performed extensively and, in 2024, released its second album, six hands open as one, on the Warsaw label Fundacja Słuchaj.
We can look forward to the meeting of two renowned masters of contemporary jazz and an artist rooted in new music – a constellation full of surprises. This is particularly true because the trio regards jointly developed compositional lines and themes merely as points of departure for extended improvisations, in which concentrated listening, acting and reacting within the group form the central element.
All three musicians are outstanding stylists who move beyond traditional forms without entirely dissolving musical structures.
This concert is part of the anniversary tour, supported by Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Arts Council.
Location: MUG – Munich Underground at Einstein Kultur
Entrance fee: 20 Euro, members of Offene Ohren e.V. 15 Euro, free admission up to 21 years (inclusive)
The box office opens at approximately 7:30 p.m.
The friends of improvised music of the Offene Ohren e.V. would like to thank the Kulturreferat München for its continuous help allowing to present improvised music in Munich.