July 26 and 27, 2019
8th Annual
Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar Festival
July 26 and 27, 2019
Guitarists will converge on Nashville in July for the Eighth Annual Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar Festival. The only event of its kind in the Midwest, it will bring 30 of the finest fingerstyle guitar players from the United States and Europe to the Brown County Playhouse. Each guitarist will take the stage to play two songs of their choice. Contestants are judged anonymously on the basis of: arrangement; execution and articulation; expression, dynamics, and show value; and overall impression. The final five competitors will be announced at the end of the afternoon competition. Then the final five will compete in a second round for the top three winner spots.
Artists are competing for a handcrafted Thomas Roeger guitar, valued at $ 5,500, and the opportunity to play during the evening concert.
The Indiana State Fingerstyle Competition is one of only eight competitions worldwide to be accredited by the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas, honoring acoustic musicians for the past 46 years.
This year’ s concert features world-renowned artists Muriel Anderson, Christie Lenée, and Helen Avakian— three previous winners of the International Fingerstyle Competition at Walnut Valley.
Fingerstyle guitar is the technique of playing the guitar by plucking the strings directly with fingertips, fingernails,
2018 winner Bill Russell and the four other finalists.
or picks attached to the right hand fingers. The term is often used synonymously with fingerpicking, classical, or thumb style. Prominent fingerstyle players include Chet Atkins, Merle Travis, Tommy Emmanuel, and Andres Segovia.
WTIU Public Television will be filming a documentary of the event, to be broadcast in the fall of this year. The Guitar Festival spans two days. Friday, July 26 features guitar workshops and a party at the Brown County Inn. Workshops are from 3 to 5:30 p. m., led by Muriel Anderson, Helen Avakian, and Christie Lenée. Workshop information and registration at < indianastringfest. com >. The Friday Night Party is from 7 to 11 p. m. Performers will include 12 nationally-ranked guitarists, including previous winners of the competition.
Saturday, July 27 features the competition and the evening concert. The competition begins at 11 a. m. at the Brown County Playhouse. The top three winners will be announced at 4 p. m. earning them the opportunity to perform during the 7:30 p. m. evening concert.
The Brown County Playhouse doors open at 9:30 a. m. on July 27. Competition takes place from 11 a. m. to 4 p. m. The evening concert begins at 7:30 p. m. Tickets are available online at < indianastringfest. com > or < browncountyplayhouse. org > and at the Brown County Playhouse during regular box office hours.
For more information visit < indianastringfest. com >. •
60 Our Brown County • July / August 2019