Uwe Kropinski

With Uwe Kropinski, one of the most distinguished jazz and improvisation guitarists of our time takes the stage. His music transcends stylistic boundaries, blending jazz, classical music, rock, and world music into a unique and highly expressive sonic universe.

Kropinski began his musical career as a teenager, performing as a rock guitarist and Beatles interpreter, before studying jazz and classical guitar at the University of Music “Hanns Eisler” in Berlin. He quickly developed into an outstanding soloist and has been active on international stages since the 1970s, collaborating with numerous musicians such as David Friesen, Michael Heupel, Cecil McBee, and many others.

His playing has been celebrated in the press with superlatives: the Stuttgarter Zeitung called him a “guitarist of the century,” the Nord-West-Zeitung referred to him as the “Glenn Gould of the guitar,” and Zitty Berlin wrote that he plays “like Keith Jarrett on six strings.” In the United States, Guitar Player Magazine described him as the “Jimi Hendrix of the acoustic guitar.”

What defines Kropinski is his highly virtuosic technique and his innovative approach to the instrument: since 1989 he has been playing specially designed guitars with up to 39 frets, custom-built for him, and he often uses the guitar body as a percussive sound source – an approach that expands the instrument into entirely new sonic dimensions.

More than just a guitarist, Kropinski is a true sonic explorer – his improvisations are spontaneous, profound, and full of unexpected turns.