David Gilmore

Born on 5 February 1964 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, Gilmore entered a household steeped in music through his father’s work as a classical percussionist. Drums initially shaped his path, yet guitar overtook that focus during his early teens, leaving the percussion role to his brother, Marque Gilmore. Although pop and funk first captured his ear, jazz soon drew him in more deeply, an interest sharpened by lessons with John Baboian and Randy Roos. At that stage his key reference points were John McLaughlin’s Mahavishnu Orchestra and Chick Corea’s Return To Forever. He continued his training at New York University under Joe Lovano and Jim McNeely. While based in New York he joined Steve Coleman’s M-Base Collective, an experience that further expanded his command of unusual metres.

Over the ensuing years Gilmore’s collaborations have spanned many idioms and have included Muhal Richard Abrams, Geri Allen, Cindy Blackman, Ron Blake, Randy Brecker, Don Byron, Uri Caine, Steve Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Jack DeJohnette, Dave Douglas, Melissa Etheridge, Robin Eubanks, Rachelle Ferrell, Trilok Gurtu, Isaac Hayes, Graham Haynes, Roland Shannon Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Lost Tribe, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Meshell Ndegéocello, Joan Osborne, Greg Osby, Lonnie Plaxico, Dianne Reeves, Sam Rivers, David Sanborn, Boz Scaggs, Wayne Shorter, Mavis Staples, Joss Stone, Steve Williamson and Cassandra Wilson. In 2003 he presented his composition “African Continuum,” supported by a Chamber Music America New Works Composer grant.

Among the ensembles Gilmore has led, Kindred Spirits emerged in the early 2000s with Matthew Garrison on bass, Aref Durvesh on tabla, and Marque Gilmore on drums. He has also joined forces with Claudia Acuña, Ravi Coltrane, Christian McBride and Jeff Watts, documenting the partnership on the 2006 recording Unified Presence. Moving with equal ease between improvisation and fully notated settings, Gilmore is recognized for probing the limitless potential of rhythmic variation. (NB: Not to be confused with the English rock guitarist David Gilmour.)