In the world of music production, few names resonate as profoundly as Hans-Martin Buff. His recent Grammy win for Best Immersive Album with Peter Gabriel’s i/o is not just a well-deserved accolade, it is a major moment in the ongoing evolution of immersive audio. As a lifelong Peter Gabriel fan, I was already counting down the days until i/o dropped. However, nothing prepared me for the depth and richness of the immersive mix. It is, without question, the best immersive mix I have ever experienced. It deserved that Grammy, and then some.
Peter Gabriel’s i/o is, quite simply, a masterpiece—his first album of original material since Up (2002), and my favourite release of the last ten years. It proves, without question, that he remains at his creative peak. The concept is ambitious, with each of the twelve songs presented in multiple versions: the Bright-Side Mix by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent, the Dark-Side Mix by Tchad Blake, and the In-Side Mix in Dolby Atmos, mixed by Hans-Martin Buff at Real World Studios. This immersive version is no afterthought. Gabriel gave Buff tremendous freedom to approach the songs with fresh perspective, and Buff didn’t simply pan stems around. Instead, he crafted a new experience altogether—one that feels built from the ground up to explore sound, space, and perception. The result is a truly multidimensional listening journey that reveals more with every play.
From Germany to the States: The Early Years
Hans-Martin’s path into music was anything but conventional. Growing up in Germany, he had a love for pop music and played in high school bands, but originally, he had his sights set on journalism. When that didn’t quite take off, he took a leap, heading to the United States to reconnect with friends. There, he discovered Music Tech, which later became McNally Smith, in Minneapolis, and something clicked. He had found his path. It wasn’t just about learning to record music. It was about unlocking the tools to translate emotion into sound. That decision set him on a journey that led to studios, stages, and collaborators that most of us only dream about.
Working with Prince: Creative Fireworks
One of those dream scenarios was working with Prince. Hans-Martin served as Prince’s engineer for four intense and creatively relentless years in the late ’90s. This wasn’t your average session gig. Prince kept odd hours. Buff would wait for the pager to buzz, signalling that it was time to roll. “It was super intense,” he says. “We’d often go until early morning.”
Those long hours taught him more than just technical endurance. He learned how to follow the emotional urgency of an artist, to shape sound in real time, and to adapt quickly to creative lightning strikes. That foundation of responsiveness and emotional focus has become a hallmark of his work ever since.
Returning to Germany: A New Creative Phase
Armed with experience and a solid reputation, Buff returned to Germany. There, he collaborated with an impressive roster of European artists, from Zucchero to Tom Jones, and spent years working with the Scorpions. It was a chance to continue sharpening his creative and technical instincts, working across styles, genres, and generations.
From Mixing to Meaning: The Immersive Shift
Seven years ago, Hans-Martin had another career-defining moment when he heard a binaural rendering of a 5.1 mix. “I thought, ‘Wow, that’s a game changer,’” he remembers. That experience sparked a new obsession, one that led him into the cutting edge of immersive audio.
Here’s what makes Hans truly special. He’s not just remixing legacy albums for immersive formats. He is working on music that is conceived, performed, and recorded specifically with immersive in mind. While many are focused on retrofitting stereo albums into spatial environments, Hans is shaping soundscapes that are intended from the beginning to wrap around you, to move, to breathe.
That mindset is exactly what made his work on i/o so compelling. The immersive mix is not simply a spatial version of the stereo album. It is its own artistic statement, its own emotional journey. And that is what makes it such a triumph. Hans brings a rare blend of musical intelligence and technical mastery to these projects. He is a producer’s producer, someone who understands harmony, dynamics, space, and narrative in equal measure. He doesn’t just think in terms of channels and reverb tails. He thinks like a songwriter, like a fan, like someone who cares deeply about how music feels.
Working with Peter Gabriel: A Dream Gig
So when Peter Gabriel came calling, thanks to a connection through Andreas Sennheiser, Hans was beyond thrilled. “I was just a fanboy at that point,” he laughs, recalling the moment he received an email from Gabriel himself. And I completely understand that. Peter Gabriel is one of the most emotionally articulate and sonically adventurous artists of our time. To collaborate with him on a project like i/o, especially knowing it was being created with immersive audio in mind from the start, is the dream. Hans didn’t just step up to the opportunity, he soared.
“Peter didn’t micromanage me,” Buff recalls. “He focused on the emotional thread of the music.” That level of trust gave Hans the freedom to explore, re-recording guitar parts, shaping spatial movement, and building a mix that takes full advantage of immersive technology without sacrificing heart.
Gabriel made it clear. “I don’t care if it sounds anything like stereo as long as it’s great.” And that is exactly what Hans delivered.
The Process: Precision and Passion
Mixing i/o was not a quick or straightforward process. It took nearly three months to complete, with some tracks demanding several days each to perfect. Even the more seemingly straightforward songs presented their own challenges. This wasn’t about recreating the stereo mix in a bigger space, it was about crafting a new listening experience that could stand proudly on its own.
The immersive version of “Panopticon” is a standout example. With added guitars and expertly layered spatial dynamics, the track becomes a living environment rather than a linear track. You don’t just hear it, you inhabit it.
The Spirit of Collaboration
Despite his technical prowess, Hans-Martin is the first to say that it’s not about the gear, it’s about the people. He thrives in collaborative settings, bringing out the best in artists while respecting their vision. Whether it is the Scorpions, Prince, or Peter Gabriel, his strength lies in being able to meet them where they are and then take the sound somewhere new. He is also incredibly empathetic to today’s musicians, who are often stretched thin trying to juggle performance, promotion, and production. “You have to be your own video editor, PR manager, and distribution system,” he says. It is a far cry from the days when an artist could focus entirely on music. And it makes the role of a trusted collaborator like Hans more important than ever.
Looking Ahead: The Next Chapter of Immersive
Hans-Martin is just getting started. He envisions a future where artists begin thinking immersively from the moment they write a song, and he wants to help shape that future, whether it is working on new music or even reimagining greatest hits collections through the lens of spatial audio.
He believes in the process, in following the song wherever it wants to go. As he puts it, “If you can augment what’s there, most things will work.” That is the mindset of a true artist, always listening, always learning, always evolving.
A Legacy in the Making
From a curious student in Minneapolis to engineering for Prince, from collaborating with European icons to redefining immersive audio alongside Peter Gabriel, Hans-Martin Buff has had an extraordinary journey. He is not just riding the wave of immersive music, he is helping shape the tide.
And for fans like me, who have been waiting decades to hear Peter Gabriel in a format that finally does justice to the complexity and intimacy of his work, Hans has delivered something truly special. i/o is not just an album, it is an experience. And it is thanks in no small part to the passion, knowledge, and imagination of Hans-Martin Buff.
