Vahakn has been immersed in sound synthesis, composition, whale-sound archaeology, and cutting-edge instrument building for decades. His sonic identity was shaped on the UK dance music scene and sharpened by a dose of bold contemporary experimentation inspired by the Stockhausen generation—an influence rooted in his father, composer Rolf Gehlhaar.

His music zooms in to the microscopic—hairs on a leaf—then expands into basslines as charged as a tuned thunderstorm. Sets can move from straight rave energy to deep listening burners and contemporary dance soundscapes, each piece crafted for the hungry ear and the moving body.

As a composer for the sometimes eleven-piece, wild and untameable Gentle Mystics—who have graced festival stages worldwide—he developed a signature method of fusing bleeps and grit with seductive, hip-loosening horn harmonies.