The Kentucky State Fiddle Championship is returning to the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum on Saturday, and registration for the event is still open.
There is no fee to enter the contest (register and find more info here). There will be multiple cash prize categories for fiddle, flatpicking guitar, mandolin, bluegrass banjo, and clogging.
On the day of the competition, there will be spectator tickets available for $10 each. Spectator tickets allow for viewing of the contest in the Hall of Fame’s theatre plus grants access to tour the exhibits in the museum space. Seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
The event is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and will proceed in the following order, according to the event website:
- Flatpick Guitar
- Jr Jr Fiddle (Ages 12 and under)
- Jr Fiddle (Ages 13 to 17)
- Mandolin
- Adult Fiddle (18 to 49)
- Sr Fiddle (50 and over)
- Bluegrass Banjo
- Dancing – Junior (Ages 17 and under)
- Dancing – Senior (Ages 18 and over)
- Championship Fiddle-Off
The Hall of Fame acquired the Kentucky State Fiddle Championship in 2020 and hosted it in 2021.
Kentucky’s Joel Whittinghill was named the overall champion, also winning the Adult Fiddle and Mandolin categories.
Randy Lanham, education director at the Hall of Fame education director, was the state champion fiddler in 1992. Other notable past winners include Mark O’Connor (three-time Grammy winner, six-time CMA Musician of the Year), and Jimmy Mattingly (plays fiddle for Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton).
