Wolfgang Muthspiel

Austrian jazz guitarist, composer and leader.

Born in 1965, guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel lives in Vienna and is regarded as one of the most influential guitarists of his generation. Initially trained as a violinist, he fell in love with the guitar at the age of fifteen. His interest in composing his own music and improvisation led him to focus on jazz. After studying with Mick Goodrick at the New England Conservatory and continuing his education at Berklee College of Music in Boston, he toured for two years with the Gary Burton Quintet, earning a strong reputation in the jazz scene. Since the mid-1990s, he lived and worked in New York — the jazz capital of the world. Collaborating with vocalist Rebekka Bakken, he explored the world of pop music, and through the Muthspiel/Muthspiel project with his brother, he ventured into electronic music. He has also been a valued collaborator of artists such as Trilok Gurtu, Dhafer Youssef, Youssou N’Dour, Maria Joao, Dave Liebman, Peter Erskine, Paul Motian, Bob Berg, Gary Peacock, Don Alias, Larry Grenadier, John Patitucci, Dieter Ilg, Vienna Art Orchestra, and many others.

In 2000, he founded the record label Material Records, which released numerous recordings for the international market. After a European tour with his new quartet in 2008 and performances in the duo project Friendly Travelers with drummer Brian Blade, Muthspiel began dedicating more time to the MGT Trio (Muthspiel – Grigoryan – Towner), which released the highly acclaimed album From a Dream following several tours. He also composed works for various ensembles, including Klangforum Wien for the 200th anniversary of Joseph Haydn, commissioned by the Esterházy Foundation. He is also a producer for young artists’ recordings and has been a lecturer at the University of Music FHNW in Basel since 2004.

In 2017, Muthspiel initiated the Focus Year program at Jazzcampus in Basel and continues to serve as the artistic director of this globally unique, year-long intensive music exploration program.

In June 2012, the album Vienna Naked was released — a program of songs composed by Muthspiel for guitar and voice.

Muthspiel made his debut on the Munich-based ECM label with MGT in 2013 with the album Travel Guide. In 2014, he debuted as a bandleader on ECM. The trio album Driftwood, with Brian Blade and Larry Grenadier, was enthusiastically received by critics. That same year, Muthspiel was contracted by the Vienna Konzerthaus to lead his own concert series. Following the Vienna World project, Muthspiel embarked on another recording in 2015, performing and recording with eighteen musicians in Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, New York, Sweden, and Vienna.

In autumn 2016, he released Rising Grace on ECM. This quintet recording — featuring Brad Mehldau, Ambrose Akinmusire, Brian Blade, and Larry Grenadier — appeared on many “Best of 2016” lists, received 5 out of 5 stars from DownBeat magazine, and led to numerous sold-out concerts worldwide. In 2018, the quintet toured with the project Where The River Goes, this time with Eric Harland on drums. The recording of the project led to further performances by the group.

In 2019, the guitarist launched The Wolfgang Muthspiel Large Ensemble, which performed a program of Muthspiel’s compositions arranged by Guillermo Klein the following year. The 19-piece ensemble, featuring European jazz legends and virtuosos of classical chamber music, gave concerts in 2020 in venues such as the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg and the Wiener Konzerthaus.

In spring 2020, the album Angular Blues was released — recorded during a 2018 trio tour in Japan with Scott Colley and Brian Blade. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the European and American promotional tours for the album were canceled.

Among the numerous awards Muthspiel has received are the Hans Koller Prize for Musician of the Year and the title of European Jazz Musician of the Year 2013. In December 2020, Musicians magazine named him one of the top ten guitarists in the world.

In 2021, he received the German Jazz Award in the category “String Instruments: International Scene.”