Ralph Heidel

“This Berlin-based multi-instrumentalist’s austere orchestrations betray a delicate touch, be it the sad sweeping strings of Wenn Ich Wach Werde or the late-Radiohead loops and glitchy samples of Admiring” - Mojo, ★★★★

“Nostalgic warmth and delicately skittering arrangements” - Electronic Sound

“Intellectually stimulating and profoundly beautiful” - A Closer Listen

Berlin-based composer and saxophonist Ralph Heidel today announces his third studio album, anyways.onto better things, set for release on 21 February 2025 via his own label Friends with Oranges. 

Alongside the announcement, Ralph is sharing the album’s second single, ‘Wake Up,’ a collaboration with legendary Japanese composer Jun Miyake. Anchored by a hypnotic piano progression, the piece is led by Ralph’s warm saxophone atop richly textured electronic arrangements.

As the song evolves, Jun Miyake’s improvisational brilliance and airy flugelhorn line elevates the piece, culminating in an otherworldly finale. The accompanying video, directed by Lisa Harres, captures this creative encounter between Ralph and Jun in New York City.

On the track, Ralph offers: “Having Jun Miyake with me on this track means the world to me. His compositions inspired me so much, especially his compositions for the female Bulgarian choir and all his tracks he contributed to Pina Bausch's pieces. Writing this chord progression took me quite a while, because I wanted an interesting loop that’s never-ending, which is not easy to find. When I finished this track I wanted a trumpet on it, so I reached out and a few months later I was in NYC meeting one of my idols.”

Ralph Heidel’s anyways.onto better things is a statement of profound transformation. It is a spacious album that glows with understated beauty, and navigates the uncertain terrain of loss and renewal with a rare clarity. Across its tracks, Ralph seems to find entirely novel tones, weaving the warmth of analog instruments—saxophone, piano, and flute—with lush electronic textures.

On the creative process behind the album, Ralph shares: “It’s the first time for me that the development of the album is perfectly in line with my inner process in life; that was very fascinating. This album is definitely my most personal and intimate work and feels like a new chapter - both in life and musically. It’s the rawest sounding yet also. Of course I still use a lot of my analog synthesizers, but how I recorded and treated my woodwinds is different than before, because I recorded certain moments in the room. There were no second takes - the performance and moment was the focus, not the post production.”

Drawing deeply from personal experiences, Ralph describes the record as a farewell to a time when music became his survival strategy, using it as a space to process loss and embrace new possibilities. anyways.onto better things balances this delicate tension: the pain of letting go counterposed with the quiet hope of new beginnings. Tracks unfold like private revelations, at times steeped in introspection, and at others reaching towards something vast and universal.

Collaboration is also central to the album’s fabric. Contributions from singer Douglas Dare, Japanese composer Jun Miyake, German vocalist Lisa Harres, multi-hyphenate artist Selassie and musician Finn Ronsdorf all bring diverse voices to the dialogue, each enhancing the record's genre-spanning approach and its emphasis on artistic unity and merit.

In anyways.onto better things, Ralph Heidel has made a record that doesn’t just reflect on transformation but embodies it—a work of quiet urgency and enduring possibility.

More on Ralph Heidel:

As a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer, Ralph Heidel creates music that bridges the intimate and the expansive. Drawing from jazz, electronic, pop, and contemporary classical influences, his work captures deeply personal moments and transforms them into pieces that feel both immediate and timeless.

Ralph studied jazz saxophone and composition at the Munich University of Music and Performing Arts. During that time, he developed a unique approach to music-making, blending acoustic and electronic elements into something entirely his own. This exploration led to his debut album, Moments of Resonance (2019), recorded with his ensemble, Homo Ludens. Originally a university project, the album laid the groundwork for his future projects.

After relocating to Berlin, Ralph’s work has continued to evolve. His sophomore album, Modern Life (2022), created in collaboration with producer Max Rieger, explored themes of contemporary existence through layered instrumentation and intricate production. The album earned international acclaim, with praise from Mojo, Electronic Sound, BBC Radio 6 and BBC Radio 3, among others.

Throughout his career, he has collaborated with an impressive roster of artists, including hip-hop producer Ben Bazzazian, Finn Ronsdorf, Apsilon, and German rap icon Casper.

With each project, Ralph Heidel continues to explore the edges of genre; unbound by tradition and led by emotional authenticity.