Jozef van Wissem is an avant-garde composer and lutenist. He  plays an all black, one-of-a-kind custom-made baroque lute. His works often have a Christian-mystical appeal. In 2013, Jozef won the Cannes Film Festival Soundtrack Award for Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive.

Over the years, Jozef has collaborated with Zola Jesus, Tilda Swinton, as well as with his long-time collaborative partner and friend, Jim Jarmusch, with whom Jozef has recorded four albums with. In February 2021 Jozef  premiered a new black Baroque lute on Dutch National TV. The instrument had the Latin words “Ex Mortis” inscribed in the neck.