Joseph Palmer – biography

Image courtesy of the artist.

Image courtesy of the artist.

Award-winning guitarist Joseph Palmer has earned a reputation as one of the most highly engaging and dynamic young performers on the American guitar scene. His performances have captivated audiences in cities throughout the U.S., and in Canada, Mexico, Serbia, and France.

Joseph began studying classical guitar at the age of fifteen in his hometown of Rockwall, Texas. He went on to earn degrees in music performance at Columbus State University (2009, B.M.) and the University of Texas at Austin (2011, M.M. & 2015, D.M.A.). In the later years of his studies, Palmer toured the competition circuit and was awarded eight 1st prizes in international guitar competitions, receiving seventeen awards in total at festivals such as the Boston GuitarFest, Guitare Montreal, and the World Guitar Competition.

In recent years, Joseph has passionately devoted himself to sharing classical music with diverse populations. As the ‘Performance Engagement Artist’ for Austin Classical Guitar, he gives over 50 interactive concerts each year throughout the public schools and underserved communities, and is a passionate advocate for music's potential to inspire and transform.

As an extension of his work with Austin Classical Guitar, Joseph is also the co-creator of the world’s first classical guitar educational resource for students with blindness/visual impairment, which launched in Summer 2018 (letsplayguitar.org).

In 2018, Joseph Palmer joined the acclaimed Texas Guitar Quartet (txgq.net). This fall, he joined the faculty of University of Mary Hardin-Baylor as instructor of guitar in Belton, TX, where he also runs the annual Texas Guitar Conference.