Yevgeni "Jeff" Birkhoff
Yevgeni “Jeff” Birkhoff (JBF) is an award-winning composer, sound-designer and musician, based in Cologne, Germany. In his unique brand of complex sonic and musical audio productions, JBF is one of the most versatile voices in the industry.
His work is in high demand – nationally and internationally: It reaches from authentic EDM club tracks to full orchestral scores in the vein of John Williams, from classical media sound design to artificial spatial sound environments, from trailer and film scores to entire sound tracks for large-scale shows and events.
Brands as diverse as Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Bose, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, IBM, Bosch, ABB Robots or Bayer – just to name a few – rely on JBF’s custom-tailored, high-impact sound tracks for their shows, presentations and commercials. From 2010 to 2015, he also was a close and frequent collaborator of multimedia show innovator Andree Verleger.
“I always see my work as providing the emotional and dramaturgical backbone through music and sound for the medium I am working in”, Jeff explains. “I create the sonic space, in which all elements come together and form a harmonic whole: Be it the story and imagery of audiovisual media like commercials, be it the multiple layers of elements in large-scale events: performers, light, stage, props, media – and even fireworks.”
This approach certainly culminates in JBF’s collaboration on large scale productions like New Year’s Eve Dubai 2013 and 2018 or the 2016 project “Memory of Yan’An” in China: This permanent open-air surround sound multimedia experience (still performed daily) takes its audience on a journey from Beijing to Yan’An alongside a young Chinese woman joining the communist revolutionary movement.
Still, Jeff’s work reaches far beyond the realm of large scale shows and commercials: He has lent his talent to a broad spectrum of projects from movies – including internationally acclaimed documentary drama “The Real American –Joe McCarthy” to club tracks and remixes for different underground artists, e. g. the “Father of British Neo-Soul”, Omar Lyefook.
Pioneering production of 3D Audio long before it became a VR commodity, his spatial works are still integral part of the exhibitions at the rock’n’pop museum Gronau, at the Odysseum Cologne and in the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles.
Many of the projects and events Jeff has worked on have been deemed worthy of accolades and multiple industry awards – e.g. the “NuSkin Success Trip – Gala Dinner” in Dubai or the Anniversary Gala “125 Years of Bosch” in Stuttgart. For his score of the short film “Now, now, now” (“Jetzt ist wichtig”), Jeff personally received the prestigious Peer Raben Music Award in 2009.
Despite his impressive portfolio at barely the age of 40, JBF still sees himself as a constant learner, always eager to expand his horizon and explore new media and new technologies.
“How does sound behave in virtual spaces? That’s one of the questions I want to explore – so I actively seek more collaborations on Virtual Reality applications, be it a sound collage, be it the sound track for a linear or interactive story”, explains Jeff. “I also would love to create sound tracks to projects with a longer musical and dramaturgical arc like games or TV series – giving me the opportunity to explore my material in greater depth. My absolute dream would be a full length theatrical multimedia production in the style of Cirque du Soleil – creating a sonic journey through different pieces and styles that still form a harmonic and seamless experience.”