Producer, DJ & Composer · Berlin, Germany
Henrik Schwarz
Henrik Schwarz is a Berlin-based German producer who went from deep house and DJ-Kicks to orchestral and jazz work on his Between Buttons label.
quick facts
- Born
- 31 May 1972
- Birthplace
- Bergatreute, Germany
- Nationality
- German
- Based in
- Berlin, Germany
- Active since
- 2002
- Labels
- Between Buttons
- Genres
- Deep House, House, Electronica, Jazz
Sources: henrikschwarz.com, en.wikipedia.org, de.wikipedia.org
Henrik Schwarz is one of the few house producers who has convincingly followed the music out of the club and into the concert hall without abandoning the dancefloor. He first became known for elegant, soulful dance records and remixes in the 2000s, then spent the 2010s working with jazz pianists, the Metropole Orkest and a string quartet, while still playing techno events.
Early Life and Path Into Music
Henrik Schwarz was born on 31 May 1972 in Bergatreute, near Ravensburg in southern Germany, according to German Wikipedia. English Wikipedia and MusicBrainz give the same date. The German article says his early productions combined acid jazz with soul and funk, and that he played first shows outside Baden-Württemberg from 1992.
In 1995 he met Juju Christian Treuter and started working in the record shop Future Jam, where he first encountered Detroit techno and Chicago house. He completed a graphic design degree in 1999 and moved to Berlin in 2000. His first single followed in 2003, per German Wikipedia, and his official site dates his own releases to 2002.
Sound and Style
His official biography describes a balance between electronic music, classical and jazz, and between charged dance sets at huge techno events and concert performances in seated auditoriums. The dance-floor side leans on warm, soulful house and a remix catalogue that includes Michael Jackson, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Coldplay and Mary J. Blige, as his site lists. In 2006 he mixed DJ-Kicks: Henrik Schwarz, and in 2007 he released Henrik Schwarz Live, which documented his shift from DJ to live laptop performer. His 2009 mix album The Grandfather Paradox was made with Âme and Dixon, and the German article notes that the three also appear as Innervisions Orchestra and A Critical Mass.
Labels and Releases
His output has appeared on a long list of labels. German Wikipedia names Sunday Music, Moodmusic, !K7, Ninja Tune, Ostgut Ton, Innervisions, Running Back, Defected and BBE, among others. He also runs his own label, Between Buttons, launched in partnership with !K7. Its first release was his EP Works Piano, per English Wikipedia, and his 2019 album with the Alma String Quartet, CCMYK, came out on it on 24 May 2019, as his official site says.
Career Highlights
Concert Hall and Orchestra Work
From 2010 Schwarz has performed as a musician and composer. He began collaborating with the Norwegian pianist Bugge Wesseltoft that year, which led to the album Duo (2011); adding the bassist Dan Berglund created the trio behind Trialogue (2014), and Duo II followed in 2022. His 2015 album Instruments involved orchestras and ensembles including the Dutch Chamber Orchestra, per his site. He also worked with the Metropole Orkest under Jules Buckley, and their concert Scripted Orkestra opened the Amsterdam Dance Event on 19 October 2016, with the album released in 2018.
Berghain and Berlin
In May 2013 Schwarz was one of the composers, alongside Marcel Dettmann with Frank Wiedemann and Efdemin with Marcel Fengler, for Masse, a Berlin State Ballet production staged in the Halle am Berghain, according to his project page. He wrote a score of nearly 30 minutes. We cover how the club itself is run in our Berghain explainer, and for the wider scene see our guide to the best Berlin clubs.
Commissions
His site lists commissioned work for the Berlin State Ballet, the Philharmonie Luxembourg, the Tonhalle Zürich and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, plus new music for silent film classics and a sound logo for the production company FilmNation. In 2015 he recorded a rework of Debussy's string quartet for Decca Records, according to German Wikipedia, and wrote the title music for the ZDF television programme Das Literarische Quartett.
FAQ
Who is Henrik Schwarz?
Henrik Schwarz is a German producer, DJ and composer from Bergatreute who lives in Berlin. He is known for deep house and remixes, the DJ-Kicks compilation he mixed in 2006, and orchestral and jazz projects.
How old is Henrik Schwarz?
Henrik Schwarz was born on 31 May 1972, which makes him 54 (age 54 as of October 2026).
Where is Henrik Schwarz from?
He is German. He was born in Bergatreute, near Ravensburg in southern Germany, and moved to Berlin in 2000, where he is still based.
What genre does Henrik Schwarz play?
He plays deep house and house, and has moved increasingly toward classical crossover and jazz, collaborating with orchestras and pianists.
What is Henrik Schwarz's real name?
Henrik Schwarz records under his own name. No separate birth name is published in the sources we checked.
What is Between Buttons?
Between Buttons is Schwarz's own label, launched with !K7. It focuses on acoustic sounds and contemporary classical music, and released his album CCMYK with the Alma String Quartet in May 2019.
What did Henrik Schwarz do at Berghain?
He wrote music for Masse, a Berlin State Ballet production staged in the Halle am Berghain from May 2013, alongside Marcel Dettmann, Frank Wiedemann, Efdemin and Marcel Fengler.
Who has Henrik Schwarz collaborated with?
His collaborators include the pianist Bugge Wesseltoft, the bassist Dan Berglund, the Metropole Orkest, the Alma String Quartet, and Âme and Dixon.
festivals
Past appearances and announced lineups only, each checked against the festival's own records.