About

Martin Gilmore is a Colorado-based singer-songwriter and guitarist rooted in American folk traditions. Winner of the Kerrville New Folk Competition, the Telluride Troubadour Contest, and the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Songwriter Showcase, he blends original songs with carefully chosen historical material, drawing from folk, bluegrass, country, and western swing. Known for fluid flatpicking and thoughtful storytelling, Martin’s performances honor tradition while keeping the music immediate and alive. Whether in a concert hall or an intimate living room, he creates concerts that are dynamic, personal, and grounded in the enduring craft of American song.

Music

I’m primarily a songwriter working in American roots traditions (folk, bluegrass, country, and western swing.) The music I write grows out of those styles and their storytelling clarity, their melodic directness, and their rhythmic drive. I’m inspired by the early writers and string bands who shaped American music, but my goal isn’t to recreate the past. It’s to write songs that feel like they belong to that lineage while speaking to the present. In performance, I weave original material with a few carefully chosen older songs that help illuminate the conversation between then and now.

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Programs

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