Front Row Podcast From Swallow Hill Music

Denver has a cutting edge avant-garde music scene exploring the borders of conventional music. Martin is joined by two prestigious Denver musicians and composers versed in prepared instruments. Janet Feder is an acclaimed guitarist and "musical experimenter." She has a bag of gadgets that expand her guitar into something unexpected, new and wonderful. Conrad Kehn teaches music composition at the University of Denver. For this episode, he found some things in his car and changed the piano into a collage of new sounds and depth. Martin, Conrad and Janet talk about the norms of music and art, what it's like to push the boundaries of sound and what listening means. It's an in depth discussion about something musicians often take for granted. Check out their websites: www.playgroundensemble.org andwww.janetfeder.com. Enjoy!

Pete Wernick is one of the most famous figures in the bluegrass banjo community and a figurehead of bluegrass music. His career has spanned five and a half decades of bluegrass music. Martin sits down to talk to Dr. Wernick about bluegrass music, banjo, his role in the International bluegrass music association and Hot Rize's new record 'When I'm Free'. Enjoy! More to come in the new year.

The Strange Americans were recently featured as one of CBS Denver's top up and coming bands of 2014. They have a new record That Kind of Luster" that was released in September. Martin sits down with Trent Nelson and Matt Hoffman to talk about Strange Americans, composition and music theory degrees. Enjoy! Photo by George Blosser.       

David Thomas Bailey and Martin have been friends since Martin moved to Denver in 2007. David is a notable guitarist who plays a really unique jazz style on a really unique 7-string guitar built by Greg German from Episode 16 (you can also hear some of his music on this episode). Martin and David talk about digital influence in the analogue world, composition and the band Faceman, which features David on guitar and bass...simultaneously...Check them out! www.facemanmusic.com

Dave Devine is an institution on the Denver Jazz scene. A true virtuoso and explorer of what guitars are capable of, Dave and martin talk about the divisions between academia and non-academic music...and what to do about it. Enjoy!

Patrick Dethlefs is a fantastic young Denver songwriter. He has a lot to say about songwriting, performing and music in general. Martin and Patrick dive in depth about the songwriting process and talk a bit about their long friendship.

Greg German is an artist by trade. Not just an artist with guitars and sound, but a painter, and medical illustrator. His unique vision has brought the world some incredible and (dare I say it) revolutionary instruments. Martin has known Greg for almost ten years. They cover a lot about guitar design and building in this conversation. All while Greg works...he never stops.

Courtney Hartman is the lead guitar player in the Grammy-nominated bluegrass band Della Mae. Martin and Courtney have been friends since they were kids competing in fiddle contests. Courtney was a master picker way back then and now she is in one of the best up and coming bluegrass bands on the scene.

Slam poetry is a rapidly rising folk art, and Slam Nuba is at the forefront of the craft. With several national competitions under their belt, Slam Nuba will return to the championships in Oakland, CA this August to try to claim the national title again. They join Martin for episode 14 of the Front Row Podcast. We hope you enjoy Martin's conversation with Luce, Jovan, Joser, Mary, Ken and Johnny.

Martin sits down for a panel discussion to weigh the benefits and disadvantages of a formal music education against an apprenticeship method. The panel includes a cast of experts from varied backgrounds including Colleen Jackson, Steve Seifert, Dave Devine and Eric Thorin. "This was our first live podcast...I learned some lessons." - Martin Gilmore.

Jayme Stone is not just a banjo player. He is a master musician with a diverse vision of what the banjo is and what it can be. He is working on a new project featuring material from the song collector and folklorist Alan Lomax.   Please support his project at http://kck.st/1pCxiDH

Swallow Hill Music's Young Songwriter's contest has brought some really great writers into the spotlight of the Denver music scene. This year the three finalists included the band Red Federation, Jobi Riccio and Thomas Martin. Martin sits down this week with all three groups and talks to them about songwriting.

Andres Cladera is the new director of the school at Swallow Hill Music. Andres is originally from Montevideo, Uruguay but came to the United States to pursue his education in music. He is a classically trained pianist and singer. He started the "Microscopic Opera" with Erica Olden in 2010. 

Heather Browne's music blog "I Am Fuel, You Are Friends" is full of discovery. She is an explorer finding sources of creativity and telling all of us about them. Since moving to Colorado from the San Francisco bay area she has discovered, uncovered, bolstered and cultivated the Colorado music scene. Check out her blog at fuelfriendsblog.com. Enjoy!

Heather Browne's music blog "I Am Fuel, You Are Friends" is full of discovery. She is an explorer finding sources of creativity and telling all of us about them. Since moving to Colorado from the San Francisco bay area she has discovered, uncovered, bolstered and cultivated the Colorado music scene. Check out her blog at fuelfriendsblog.com. Enjoy!

KC Groves has been a staple of the Colorado acoustic music scene for over 10 years. She is a fantastic songwriter, singer and bandleader. As a founding member of the internationally acclaimed old time band, Uncle Earl, She has toured the world, played the Ryman auditorium and performed with John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin fame...and those are just some highlights of her career. Enjoy!

Tim O’brien is a Grammy award winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his innovative songwriting as well for his adaptations and reproductions of traditional folk songs. His musical journey has taken him from Wheeling, West Virginia, all over the world. He is the lead singer of the famed Colorado bluegrass band Hot Rize, which found its beginnings at The Denver Folklore Center. We are glad to have him with us for the Front Row Podcast.

Kyle James Hauser's bright purple banjo case is a good indicator of his innovative style and taste. He stands out in a world of banjoists and songwriters with a style that is all his own. As a graduate of the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, he definitely shows us all how tradition and a pioneering spirit can lead to great things. Kyle James Hauser is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter now based out of Louisville, Kentucky and has a new record with SonaBLAST records called "You a Thousand Times". Check him out at www.kylejameshauser.com.

Multi-instrumentalist, master musician, songwriter, and music instructor are just a few of the adjectives that describe Ernie Martinez. As a kid, growing up in Denver, Ernie joined a burgeoning acoustic music scene when he abandoned his drums for his banjo. Now Ernie is one of the best known faces in the rocky mountain region's bluegrass and country music communities. Ernie has been a part of Swallow Hill Music's faculty since the school started in 1979. 

For more than thirteen years, Bevan Frost has been building musical instruments. His brand, Big Hollow Guitars, have become known as some of the finest quality small bodied guitars in the country. Originally from Laramie, Wyoming, Bevan Frost has traveled around the world to learn his trade. As a student in Germany he explored his trade, while at the Breedlove Guitar factory he refined his system and now he focuses on his instruments from his shop in Frisco, CO.   His instruments can be seen at www.bighollowguitars.com