Volker Bertelmann, also known by his stage name Hauschka, was born in 1966 in Kreuztal. He began taking piano lessons at the age of eight and continued for ten years. At fourteen, he founded his first rock band and later performed as a singer in several others. After finishing school, Bertelmann moved to Cologne, where he briefly studied medicine and then business administration—both of which he eventually abandoned in favor of music. Together with his cousin Oliver Lodge-Philips, he formed the hip-hop group God's Favourite Dog, which performed nationally and internationally, including as an opening act for the popular German hip hop band Die Fantastischen Vier. However, after God's Favourite Dog lost its record deal and failed to achieve lasting success, it eventually disbanded.  

After moving to Düsseldorf, Bertelmann began composing piano pieces and releasing them under his artist name Hauschka—chosen as a nod both to the Bohemian composer Vinzenz Hauschka and the natural cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschka. Under this pseudonym, his debut album "Substantial" was released in 2004, followed a year later by "The Prepared Piano." For the latter, he altered the hammers and strings of his piano using materials such as felt, rubber, and aluminum foil to create experimental sounds. More Hauschka albums followed—"Ferndorf" (2008), "Amateurs" (2011), "Abandoned City" (2014), and "What If" (2017)—featuring collaborations with orchestras and other artists and exploring experimental and interdisciplinary approaches. For instance, with American violinist Hilary Hahn, Bertelmann explored the tension between composed and improvised music on the 2012 album "Silfra," while collaborations with choreographer Aszure Barton and dancer Edivaldo Ernesto delved into the dialogue between movement and sound.  

Since 2006, Bertelmann has also been active as a film composer—initially scoring short films, and since 2012, regularly composing for feature-length national and international productions. His work includes scores for German (co-)produced feature films such as Doris Dörrie's "Glück" ("Bliss," 2012), based on Ferdinand von Schirach's short story about the love between an undocumented sex worker and a punk in Berlin; Sandra Nettelbeck's episodic tragicomedy "Was uns nicht umbringt" ("What Doesn't Kill Us," 2018); Vanessa Jopp's "Gut gegen Nordwind" ("The Space Between the Lines') based on the novel of the same name by Daniel Glattauer; and Caroline Link's adaptation of the bestselling novel "Als Hitler das rosa Kaninchen stahl" ("When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit," both 2019).  

Internationally, Bertelmann gained recognition not least through his collaborations with fellow composer Dustin O'Halloran. Together, they wrote the score for "Lion" (2016), earning nominations for major film awards including the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Oscar®. Their subsequent joint projects included the miniseries "A Christmas Carol," the fantasy action film "The Old Guard" (US 2020) starring Charlize Theron as the leader of an immortal mercenary group, and the historical drama "Ammonite" (UK 2020), loosely based on the life of British paleontologist Mary Anning (Kate Winslet).  

Bertelmann has also collaborated several times with director Edward Berger, including on the acclaimed British-American miniseries "Patrick Melrose," starring Benedict Cumberbatch; on Berger's episodic feature film about three siblings, "All My Loving," which premiered in the Panorama section of the 2019 Berlinale; and in 2022 on "Im Westen nichts Neues" ("All Quiet On the Western Front"), a new adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's anti-war novel. Bertelmann's haunting score for the film, created using a more than 100-year-old harmonium once owned by his great-grandmother, powerfully captures the horrors of war alongside the film's imagery. For this work, he was awarded an Oscar® for Best Original Score at the 95th Academy Awards. Already honored in London with seven BAFTAs, the film received nine Oscar® nominations in total and won four: Best International Feature Film, Best Production Design (Christian Martin Goldbeck, Ernestine Hipper), Best Cinematography (James Friend), and Best Original Score. At the German Film prize, Deutscher Filmpreis 2023, Volker Bertelmann also received the Lola for "Best Film Score" for his striking soundtrack.  

Bertelmann continued his successful collaboration with Edward Berger on the director's international hit "Conclave," further cementing their creative partnership. The film, a taut Vatican thriller featuring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini, earned widespread acclaim and multiple award nominations. Among its eight Oscar® nominations was one for Bertelmann's score, recognized for its atmospheric intensity and emotional depth.