The Kruger Brothers
Contemporary Bluegrass
The Kruger Brothers trio — Jens Kruger on banjo, his older brother Uwe on guitar, and American-born Joel Landsberg on bass — have spent three decades bringing European sensibility to Appalachian acoustic music. They came of age as street musicians in Switzerland obsessed with Doc Watson and Earl Scruggs records, crossed the Atlantic in stages between 1997 and 2003, and became honorary citizens of North Carolina by grafting classical music structure onto bluegrass and new American folk.
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- Jens (b. Nov 18, 1962) and Uwe (b. Apr 24, 1961) grew up in rural apple country outside Zurich where their parents ran a country restaurant; absorbed American roots music through a record their father brought home.
- Bill Monroe invited 18-year-old Jens to sit in with the Blue Grass Boys at the Grand Ole Opry in 1982 — likely the first European banjo player ever to perform on that stage.
- Jens and Uwe signed with CBS Records at 17 and hosted a nationally broadcast radio program on Swiss public radio SRG SSR from 1992 to 1995.
- Added New York-born bassist Joel Landsberg (b. July 27, 1959) in 1995. Landsberg had studied under jazz great Milt Hinton before moving to Switzerland with his Swiss wife in 1989.
- American debut at MerleFest in 1997, at Doc Watson's invitation — the event that led them to relocate to North Carolina. Uwe settled in Wilkesboro in 2000; Jens followed in 2003.
- Catalog spans 20-plus albums including the signature Up 18 North (Double Time, 2002) that cemented their original songwriting sound, plus Carolina Scrapbook volumes, Behind the Barn, Between the Notes, and Lucid Dreamer.
- Appalachian Concerto (2011) was the flagship of their classical crossover period, followed by Roan Mountain Suite and collaborative work with the Kontras Quartet, the North Carolina Symphony, and the Bangor Symphony Orchestra — the latter earning an NEA Artistic Excellence award in 2007 for Music from the Spring, Jens's symphonic suite for banjo and orchestra.
- Performed “Jack of the Wood” on Late Show with David Letterman in 2013 alongside Steve Martin, who that year presented Jens with the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass Music.
- Remembering Doc Watson (2013) — recorded after they had backed Watson on some of his final shows — remains one of their most emotionally resonant albums.
- Inducted into the Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame (Jens, 2011) and American Banjo Museum Hall of Fame (Jens, 2021). Made their Grand Ole Opry debut as a trio in August 2024.
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Forever and a Day2010
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Choices2004
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Up 18 North2002
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Travel the Gravel1998
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Access All Areas1996
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Behind the Barn1995
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Jens KrugerPlayed on recordings with The Kruger Brothers
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Uwe KrugerPlayed on recordings with The Kruger Brothers
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Joel LandsbergPlayed on recordings with The Kruger Brothers
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Del McCouryPlayed on recording with The Kruger Brothers