Born in 1994, guitarist and composer Gilles Grethen is part of the new generation of Luxembourgish jazz musicians. Before discovering his passion for guitar and jazz, he was classically trained on the violin and clarinet. His deep appreciation for classical symphonic music, with its vast richness of colors, inspires his ability to make his guitar playing both orchestral and multidimensional.

Alongside his Gilles Grethen Quartet, with whom he has released three albums, he also performs with the Nu jazz band Linq and the duo CHROMA, featuring pianist Sebastian Voltz. His artistic focus, however, is on composing and arranging for various projects.

Recently, he created a big band repertoire for the Gilles Grethen Big Band and composed works for jazz quartet and string orchestra on his album State of Mind. Other projects include compositions and arrangements for film, such as the score for Catherine Dauphin’s short film Coffee & Water, as well as works for the Luxembourg National Jazz Orchestra and the Opus78 Orchestra, both commissioned by the Ministry of Culture.

Grethen holds a bachelor’s degree in jazz guitar from the Hochschule für Musik Saar and master’s degrees in both jazz guitar and jazz composition and arrangement from the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Mannheim.

Discography:

Time Suite (Gilles Grethen Quartet, 2021, Jazz Thing Next Generation Vol. 88, Double Moon&Challenge Records)

State of Mind (Gilles Grethen Quartet, 2022, Double Moon&Challenge Records)

State of Mind - Live (Gilles Grethen Quartet, 2023)

Between Worlds (Linq, 2024)

Chroma (Chroma, 2024)