Bio

Jung-Jae Kim is a South Korean saxophonist, composer, and improviser based in Berlin, active in the free avant-garde, and experimental music scene. Through a transdisciplinary and exploratory approach, he pushes the boundaries of sonic aesthetics and instrumental roles, using free improvisation to investigate human perception, communication, and the expanding possibilities of sound.

Kim has performed widely across Europe and Asia, appearing at many festivals and concerts. He has collaborated with leading figures in European free improvisation, including Axel Dörner, Richard Scott, Alexander Frangenheim, Kriton Beyer, Andreas Willers, Ernesto Rodrigues, Marcello S. Busato, Stephen Flinn, among others. His latest release, Shamanism (Relative Pitch Records, NYC, 2025), has received widespread critical acclaim and was named one of JazzTimes’ Top 10 Releases of 2025.

Kim’s accolades include a music scholarship from the CJ Cultural Foundation (2018) and funding awards from the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation (2023) in South Korea. He has served as a performer and panelist at the Thailand New Music and Arts Symposium (2021) and completed artist residencies at Divadlo 29 (Pardubice, Czech Republic, 2023). He co-composed the soundtrack for the documentary film Silent Observers (Eliza Petkova, Wood Waters Film, 2024), which won Best Original Music at the 2025 Bulgarian Academy Awards.

Since 2023, Kim is co-organizing Nexus, a monthly Berlin series dedicated to experimental music, real-time sonic art, and intermedia performances, alongside Irish composer and sound artist Francis Heery.