PAUL WILTGEN

LuxembourgnativePaulWiltgen,isinternationallyrecognizedas an accomplished jazz percussionist, an imaginativecomposerandavisionarybandleader.Anartist in thetruestsense of the word, Paul compellingly balances his musicalaestheticandhispersonalpassion,creatingasoundfromthedrumsthatsimultaneouslysupportsandinspires. Born in Luxembourg in 1982, Paul was raised in a musicalfamily.Hebeganhismusicallifeonthecelloattheageofsixbeforemovingontoclassicalpercussiontwoyearslater.Afteran extensive classical tutelage at theMusic Conservatory inEsch/Alzette (Luxembourg) and a considerable amount oforchestralexperience(includingconcertsacrossLuxem-bourg,Germany,France,EnglandandtheNetherlands),Paulsetasidehis blossoming orchestral career to persue what wouldbecomehislife’spassion:acareerinjazz.

Notlongafterrealizinghistruevocation,Paulbecameoneofthemostin-demanddrummersinLuxembourg,playingwithEuropeanjazzgreatsClaudioFasoli(IT),Pierre-AlainGoualch(FR),SalLaRocca,ErwinVann(BE),FrankSpaniol(DE)andErnieHammes(LU).HewasinvitedtoattendmusicworkshopsaroundtheworldandhewasalsotouringEuropeandtheUnitedStatesasamemberoftheLuxembourg“Mariendall”PercussionEnsemble.September2001sawthemarkofamajormilestoneinPaul’slife:hemovedtoNewYorkCitytostudyattheManhattanSchoolofMusiconscholarship.Hecompletedbothundergraduateandgraduatestudiesatthefabledconservatory,learningfromthelikesofJohnRiley,DavidLiebman,PhilMarkowitz,MichaelAbene,GarryDial,ChrisRosenbergandJustinDiCioccio.Hiseducationwasunderwritteninpartbytheartscouncil“LaFondationIndependance”ofLuxembourg.Paulexpandedhismusical repertoirewhile inschoolbystudying IndianClassicalmusic,under theguidanceoftheworld-renownedPanditSamirChatterjee.SincegraduatingfromManhattanSchoolofMusic,Paulisinthevanguardoftoday’sjazzscene,havingworkedwithmanyofitsleadingvoices,includingJoshuaRedman,KurtRosenwinkel,MikeMoreno,DavidBinney,LageLund,PatrickCornelius,MichaelJanisch,AmbroseAkinmusire,WillVinson,WalterSmithIII,TimCollins,PabloHeldandFranzvonChossy.In collaboration with New Orleans guitarist, composer and producer Brian Seeger, Wiltgenreleased the albumOrganic Trio “Saturn’s Spell” in 2017,which features four of his originalcompositionsandwhichchartednationwideat#2intheUSJazzWeekChartsinFebruary2017andremainedintheTop10fortwomonths.

Asthedrummerandco-leaderofthetrioReis/Demuth/Wiltgen,hehasrecordedandreleasedtwo albums and collaborated with saxophonist Joshua Redman, who performed Wiltgen’scomposition “FloppyDisk”with his own groups in 2014 and 2015. Reis/Demuth/WiltgenwillappearattheLuxembourgPhilharmonicinMarch2018markingtheband’ssecondcollaborationwith Joshua Redman featuring the trio’s music arranged for the Luxembourg PhilharmonicOrchestrabymultipleGrammyAwardwinningcomposerandconductorVinceMendoza.ThetriowillrecorditsthirdalbuminSeptember2017fortherenownedItalianLabelCAMJazz.WiltgenisalsotheleaderofaNewYorkbandnamed“ThePaislies”,whichreleasedanalbumonthe Fresh SoundNewTalent record label in 2007.He is oneof theoriginalmembers of TheTransAtlanticCollective(WoodvilleRecords,UK),avivaciouscontemporaryjazzensemblemadeupofmusiciansbasedinLondonandNewYorkCity.Asamusiceducator,PaulhastaughtstudentsofallagesandlevelsformanyyearsinacademicsettingsintheUnitedStatesandinEurope.Whiletouringinternationallywithmanybandsandmusicalprojects,hehastaughtworkshopsandmasterclassesatanumberofrenownedculturalinstitutionsandmusicconservatoriessuchastheUniversityofNewOrleans,theRoyalAcademyofMusicinLondon(UK),HullUniversity(UK),CentredesMusiquesDidierLockwoodinParis(FR)andtheShanghaiJazzSchool(CN).Paulhasperformedatmajorinternationalfestivals,concerthallsandclubsintheUnitedStatesaswellasinover25countriesaroundtheworld,includingLondonJazzFestival,NorthSeaJazzFestival,NewYorkWinterJazzFest,NewOrleansFrenchQuarterFest,RonnieScott’sJazzClubinLondon,BridlandinNewYorkCity,DucdesLombardsinParis,CottonClubinTokyoandmanyothers.

www.paulwiltgen.com