Described by a Viennese critic as “A wizard of percussion,” Austrian multi-percussionist Martin Grubinger makes his solo percussion performances real “must-see” events. A regular guest with many of the leading orchestras and at the world's top venues, Grubinger possesses an unusually broad repertoire ranging from solo works and chamber music with partners including his own Percussive Planet Ensemble, to percussion concertos.

In the 2015-2016 season Grubinger debuts with New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla and returns to the National Symphony Orchestra Washington, Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, Rundfunk Sinfonie Orchester Berlin, Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León, Gewandhaus Leipzig and National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. He will be artist-in-residence at the Frankfurt Radio Symphony. Together with baritone Thomas Hampson he will tour a recital programme to Munich’s Gasteig, Wiener Konzerthaus, Teatro alla Scala in Milan and Heidelberger Frühling Festival. A tour with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Manfred Honeck will lead him into important halls across Europe.

Grubinger was artist-in-residence at the Leipzig Gewandhaus in 2008-2009 and has since followed this with residences with Camerata Salzburg and at the Philharmonie Köln, Philharmonie München, Wiener Konzerthaus and Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival just now. He has appeared with orchestras including NHK Symphony and Oslo Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, NDR Sinfonieorchester Hamburg, Münchner, Hamburger and Dresdner Philharmoniker, Wiener Philharmoniker, Bamberger Symphoniker and BBC Philharmonic. He guests regularly with leading orchestras in the United States, amongst them Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.

Amongst the growing number of works written for Grubinger are Avner Dorman’s Frozen in Time (2007) and Friedrich Cerha’s Concerto (2008), performed and recorded with the Wiener Philharmoniker conducted by Peter Eötvös on Kairos, as well as Tan Dun’s concerto, Tears of Nature (2012). Spring 2014 saw the German premiere of Eötvös’ Speaking Drums with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra conducted by the composer. His renowned percussion projects The Percussive Planet and the recently premiered Caribbean Showdown are further examples of his versatility.

Regular festival appearances include the Rheingau Music Festival, Beethoven Festival Bonn, Salzburger Festspiele, Baden-Baden Festspiele, the Brass & Percussion Festival in Tokyo’s Suntory Hall and the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago. In 2013, he was artiste étoile at Lucerne Festival.

Winner of multiple prizes, Grubinger is recipient of the Bernstein Award by the Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival and the prestigious Jeunesses Musicales’ Würth Prize. Grubinger’s first CD, Drums‘n’Chant, was followed by a live DVD recording of The Percussive Planet — both for Deutsche Grammophon. He has since recorded a number of projects for various labels.

Born in Salzburg, Grubinger studied at the Bruckner Conservatory in Linz and at the Salzburg Mozarteum. He quickly garnered attention through appearances at several international competitions, including the second World Marimbaphone Competition in Okaya, Japan, and at the EBU Competition in Norway.