The Kruger Brothers

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U.S. in 1982, where he studied bluegrass for several months under Bill Monroe. Returning to Switzerland with instructions to develop his own style, he spent what he describes as days and nights learning as many tunes as he could. In 1986, he and Uwe added American bassist Joel Landsberg to form the direct ancestor of their current trio, the Kruger Brothers.

The brothers have a sort of mystical love of Appalachian culture and landscape that shows up in their music. After making a splash at North Carolina's Merlefest in 1997 and gaining a small but intense coterie, they settled in North Carolina in 2003. Their playing combines a meditative, conversational feel with extreme instrumental rigor and detail; Jens Kruger is one of the fastest banjo players on the planet when he wants to be, but most often he applies his speed to subtle ornament and elaboration. Banjo players know him as the source of techniques unheard of elsewhere in the instrument's world.