Personally I think tumbled marble would be beautiful! But you may be thinking something more sleek since you mentioned modern.

White glass tile

Our last cabinet color was off white & we had tumbled marble, and it did look well together. However, we are looking for a change. Thanks for your input!

Search it in products, the old white glass tile would look good or I love stainless steel back splash, so modern!

Not old, solid white

Great idea...

Some ideas

We just remodeled our kitchen and I desperately wanted the solid glass! I just couldn't find anyone to attempt it. It seems easy enough to fabricate. You can do lightly frosted glass and paint the wall behind it for a hint of color or actually paint the back of the glass. We ended up going with white glass mosaic tile. I still love it but will do the solid glass someday!

I'm also a fan of the solid back painted glass backsplash. I'm in the middle of a 'modern' style kitchen remodel right now in my own home, and that's the direction I'm hoping to go (we have 3 fairly large areas to cover and I'm a bit worried about the cost).

[houzz=][houzz=]

@smusec ... I would love to see a close up of your finished backsplash

Sounds like glass is what you really want ... where are you located? Maybe somebody here can help you find a fabricator ...

You could look at the mosaic tiles that combine stone, glass and stainless tiles. I love the look of stainless but worry that its easy to go overboard quickly with stainless and have it look too industrial. I do like your granite and the upper and lower cabinets go well with it.
http://www.saltillo-tiles.com/products/tile/metal-mosaics/metal-plus-smg001
Have a look at the website I've copied in and see if some of those metal mixes might work for you. I'm partial to the circles style SMG001 SM02 but there are a few different choices of sizes and mixes that might be really flattering and pull everything together.
Good luck.

What size subway tile did you use? Have you thought about a larger format than the classic 3x6?
This is just for size not color
http://houzz.com/photos/477613

Also for size
http://houzz.com/photos/32466

Awesome idea, love it.

The glass tiles we used were 2x8. They were white however after installation, the grayish blue tinge was conflicting with the granite counter tops. Therefore we are leaning toward a solid with...

I do like that size but I could see how it could be busy. Maybe try a sample of a 4x12 or 6x12.

Being that th granite has a strong pattern, I believe the backsplash can't have any pattern.. Otherwise they clash... Which is not so good. I love the idea of a full glass painted backsplash ... However the outlets could be a problem for installation.

Brenda... They are a combination of polished and frosted glass. I purchased them online @ glasstilestore.com. They will send samples for just a few dollars. The tiles all came in unbroken!

A glass store can cut the openings for the outlets no problem. They do it for mirrors in bathrooms all the time. They may even be able to make glass outlet covers so it all blends in. OR!...you could mover your outlets to the top of the back splash just under the cabinets so the glass would be even more spectacular! Another "next house" idea for me. :(

Like this...
http://houzz.com/photos/1286255

Exactly... This looks great... The only thing I have to make sure is that the glass remains white... No greenish tinge...

Love smusec examples of the glass and frosted tiles! Just because there's pattern in the granite doesn't mean the backsplash shouldn't have any pattern. If that's what you want then just use paint for your BS. To me plain glass will look strange. Why go to the trouble and expense of adding glass?

Go with paint and add some small pictures or plaques or platters on stands for interest.

I'd recommend stainless steel tiles for that sleek modern look you are aiming for :) http://www.glasstilestore.com/collection/metal-tiles/stainless-steel-tiles.html