30th Annual Troubadour Contest
30th Annual Troubadour Contest
30th Annual Troubadour Contest
Congratulations to the 2023 Telluride Troubadour Contest winner Jackson Emmer!
The Telluride Troubadour Competition is a nationally recognized songwriter competition open to anyone who writes and performs original music and is not currently signed to a major recording or publishing deal.
Contestants are judged on the quality of the song’s composition (50%), vocal delivery (25%), and the overall performance (25%).
Ten (10) finalists will be selected to receive a 4-day pass to the 2023 Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Telluride, Colorado to compete in live performance contest for cash and prizes, as well as critical acclaim, well-deserved recognition, and a chance to perform on the festival main stage!
2023 Troubadour Finalists
We’d like to congratulate and thank the top 10 finalists for making their way to the 50th Telluride Bluegrass Festival to compete in the Troubadour Contests Finals. Once again we were inspired by the nearly 200 entries we received from around the world. These 10 finalists performed in contest rounds on Telluride’s Elks Park stage, in Troubadour-In-The-Round sets at Elks Park throughout the festival, during the festival broadcast, and the winner played Saturday at 6:30pm on the Festival Main Stage.
- Winner: Jackson Emmer (Carbondale, CO)
- Caitlin Cannon (Nashville, TN)
- Lyle de Vitry (Ashville, NC)
- Rob Drabkin (Denver, CO)
- Daphne Gale (New York, NY)
- Amy Keeler (Pugwash Junction, Nova Scotia, CA)
- Gabrielle Louise (Paonia CO)
- Sean Magwire (Oxford, MA)
- Halley Neal (Nashville, TN)
- Eliza Thorp (Petoskey, MI)
- Lalo Hart (Evergreen, CO)
2023 Honorable Mentions
- Amy Keeler (Pugwash Junction, Nova Scotia, CA)
- Sarah Morris (Shoreview, MN)
- Stacy Antonel (Nashville, TN)
- Philip Bowen (Montgomery, WV)
- Jess Clemons (The Dalles, OR)
- Nina de Vitry (Nashville, TN)
- Mark Engel (Truckee, CA)
- Olivia Espinoza (Bakersfield, CA)
- Brendan Forrest (Chicago, IL)
- Rachel Harrington (Eugene, OR)
- Michelle Held (Detroit, MI)
- Colee James (Nashville, TN)
- Jed LaPlant (Grand Rapids, MN)
- Ethan Robbins (Boston, MA)
- Mike Stocksdale (Culver City, CA)
- Hunter Stone (Boulder, CO)
- Mike Ward (Detroit, MI )
How To Enter - Song Submission
Check back soon, the song submission window for the 2024 Telluride Troubadour contest will open again sometime in December.
TROUBADOUR CONTEST FINALS - TELLURIDE, CO
The top (10) songwriters will be selected to attend the Troubadour Contest Finals held live in Telluride, CO during the Telluride Bluegrass Festival
- Top (10) Finalists will receive the following:
- 4-day pass (w/camping) to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival
- Live radio interview and performance with KOTO radio in Telluride
- Performance slot at the Elks Park Workshop Stage in addition to contest performances
- Contest Format
- Preliminary Round - Elks Park - All 10 Finalists perform (2) original songs, top 5 selected to move to Final Round
- Final Round - Elks Park - Each contestant to perform (2) Original Songs, winner selected
- Winner - Saturday Mainstage Performance
- Rules for Live Performances
- No backup musicians allowed. This is a solo competition.
- Finalists may not repeat songs from preliminaries in the finals.
- Recommended time limit: 5 minutes per song. Points will be deducted for significantly exceeding this limit.
- Acoustic instruments with pickups are permitted as well as EQ devices but no effects.
- Instruments allowed are those that can be carried out to the mics with the performer. A keyboard will be provided if necessary.
Prizes
Top (10) Finalists will receive the following:
- 4-day pass (w/camping) to the 50th Annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival
- Live radio interview and performance with KOTO radio in Telluride
- Performance slot at the Elks Park Workshop Stage in addition to contest performances
1st Place:
- Guitar
- Saturday Main Stage Performance
- Saturday Backstage Pass
- Cash
2nd Place: Cash & Prizes
3rd Place: Cash & Prizes
4th Place: Cash & Prizes
5th Place: Cash & Prizes
6th - 10th Place: Cash & Prizes
Past Winners
The Telluride Troubadour Competition has been held in conjunction with the Telluride Bluegrass Festival since 1991.
1991 - Larry Good
1992 - Cosy Sheridan
1993 - Dan Sheridan
1994 - Catie Curtis
1995 - LJ Booth
1996 - Michael Lille
1997 - Jonathan Kingham
1998 - Eugene Ruffolo
1999 - Libby Kirkpatrick
2000 - Mary Coppin
2001 - Kris Delmhorst
2002 - Deb Talan
2003 - Rachel Davis
2004 - Brian Joseph
2005 - Keith Greeninger
2006 - Nels Andrews
2007 - Gregory Alan Isakov
2008 - Nathan Moore
2009 - Mitch Barrett
2010 - Robby Hecht
2011 - Matt Harlan
2012 - Reed Waddle
2013 - Reed Turner
2014 - Michael Kirkpatrick
2015 - Caitlin Canty
2016 - Anna Tivel
2017 - Clint Alphin
2018 - Garrett Owen
2019 - Emily Scott Robinson
2023 - Jackson Emmer