Brett Kretzer is an accomplished roots and bluegrass mandolinist and teacher currently based in Golden, Colorado. While his roots are in the rich traditions of old time and bluegrass music, that certainly isn’t the limit of his influences and he isn’t afraid to venture outside of the box and explore other musical genres. Brett is a co-founder of nationally known progressive bluegrass group The Plate Scrapers, who he played with from 2013 to 2022. The band has toured up and down the east coast and Appalachian corridor numerous times, were the winners of the 2021 Telefunken Podunk Bluegrass Band Contest, an two-time official IBMA showcase artist, released three original albums, and played prestigious festivals such as Delfest, Watermelon Park Fest, Charm City Bluegrass, Podunk Bluegrass Festival, and World of Bluegrass. They’re 2020 release debuted at #9 on the Bluegrass Billboard charts and was featured in Bluegrass Today and WAMU Bluegrass Country. They’ve shared the stage with legends such as The Seldom Scene, Keller Williams, and Larry Keel. Brett played an integral role in the shaping of The Plate Scrapers through songwriting, arranging, and recording. As a recording artist, Brett has had the privilege to work on projects with members from esteemed acts such as Billy Strings, Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen, Furnace Mountain, and more. 

 Brett has been sharing his passion for the mandolin as a private instructor since 2018. He understands the importance of creating a personalized learning experience to help his students develop their technical and creative abilities and he strives to make classes engaging and interactive, with a focus on practical learning and coursework that is tailored to each student's level of skill and interest. Through his performing career, Brett is uniquely qualified to teach students to develop the skills to quickly pick up songs by ear, improvise, and play seamlessly with others. Brett started out on guitar at the ripe age of 8 years old. He had a burning passion to play rock n’ roll, and spent hours listening to the stylings of Jimmy Page, David Gilmore, and Jimi Hendrix. When his older brother picked up the guitar shortly after, Brett felt it only complementary to switch to drums and percussion, an instrument he dedicated himself to for the next 12 years. Brett spent his high school years in every musical extracurricular he could get his hands on from concert band to jazz band, drum ensemble, marching band, and even his own rock bands outside of school. 

 After High School, Brett went on to attend the Art Institute of TN - Nashville on scholarship and graduated in three years with a Bachelor’s Degree in Audio Production. Upon graduating from college, Brett returned to the east coast to pursue his true passion of performing. He picked up the mandolin on a whim, and soon found himself spending countless hours around campfires sipping moonshine and sharing tunes with Appalachian old timers - experiences that would morph into an undying passion for traditional mountain music and a fruitful professional career. These days, Brett is playing mandolin with the Denver based band SLAY. Off stage, you can find him exploing the rocky mountains and the great American west via backpacking, rock climbing, snowboarding, and any other adventure he can get his hands on.