Rob Luft

Doors 7:45 PM, Music 8:30 PM - 2 sets of music

Line-up

• Rob Luft - Guitar
• Joe Wright - Tenor saxophone
• Tom McCredie - bass
• Corrie Dick - Drums

About

Rob Luft, recently crowned ‘Instrumentalist of the Year' at the 2025 Parliamentary Jazz Awards, is undeniably one of the most exciting jazz guitarists in Europe of his generation. Hailing from London, this award-winning young virtuoso has garnered consistent comparisons to legends such as Bill Frisell, John Abercrombie & Pat Metheny.

His debut album, "Riser," released in 2017 on Edition Records, made an enormous impact on the domestic and international jazz scenes, and was selected by Downbeat Magazine as one of the finest albums of 2017. Winning the prestigious Kenny Wheeler Jazz Prize at The Royal Academy of Music propelled Luft's career, and at just 23 years old, he presented a collection of originals showcasing a remarkable instrumental sound and compositional voice that reflected his individuality.

His highly-anticipated follow up album, "Dahab Days," showcased continuous artistic growth and musical exploration. Released on Edition Records in October 2023, the album marked another significant milestone in his career. Around this time, Luft's selection as a BBC New Generation Artist culminated with him being commissioned to compose a guitar concerto for performance at the 2023 London Jazz Festival with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.

Recent collaborations with John Surman, Anders Jormin & Elina Duni on Manfred Eicher’s legendary German record label ECM Records have further solidified his reputation and expanded his reach throughout continental Europe. He has toured with many leading international jazz artists, to name a few: Aaron Parks, Avishai Cohen, Arild Andersen, Django Bates, Manu Katché & Ben Wendel.

Other accolades for Rob include the Silver Prize in The 2016 Montreux Jazz Guitar Competition at Montreux Jazz Festival, adjudicated by British guitar great John McLaughlin, as well as winning the Presto Music “Jazz Recording of the Year” 2020 for his collaborative album “Lost Ships” on ECM Records with Elina Duni, Fred Thomas & Swiss trumpeter Matthieu Michel. In the summer of 2026, he was named in Downbeat Magazine’s 74th Critics Poll as one of the Rising Stars of the electric guitar globally.