The preliminary round is held on Friday, July 29 in the Wildflower Pavilion (inside the Festival grounds). The 3 top contestants on each instrument will advance to the contest finals on the Festival main stage on Saturday, July 30. Here are the schedules for each instrument:

• Banjo
  • Prelims: Friday, 11:30am, Wildflower
  • Finals: Saturday, 10:45am, Main Stage
• Flatpick Guitar
  • Prelims: Friday, 1:00pm, Wildflower
  • Finals: Saturday, 10:30am, Main Stage
• Mandolin
  • Prelims: Friday, 2:30pm, Wildflower
  • Finals: Saturday, 10:15am, Main Stage
• Fiddle
  • Prelims: Friday, 4:00pm, Wildflower
  • Finals: Saturday, 10:00am, Main Stage
• Dobro
  • Prelims: Friday, 5:30pm, Wildflower
  • Finals: Saturday, 9:45am, Main Stage

• Each competition is limited to 12 registered contestants.
• On the day of the preliminary round (Friday, July 29), contestants must check-in with the contest staff in the Wildflower Pavilion at least 1 hour before their contest is scheduled to begin.
• Time limit is 3 minutes per song. The judges will mark you down if selections significantly exceed the time limit.
• Contestants plays 2 songs in the preliminary round and 2 songs in the final round if finishing in the top three.
• Repeats of preliminary songs are not allowed in the finals.
• One backup musician allowed. No electric instruments or pickups allowed. Performers at the Festival or RockyGrass Academy instructors may not perform as backup musicians.
• The Picking contest is judged ”in the blind”; i.e. judges will not be in the audience.
• Contestants who have previously won a contest may not enter that contest again.
• The contestant order will be randomly assigned prior to each round.
• In the event of a tie or virtual tie, the judges as a group will be allowed discretion to come to a consensus regarding the winner(s). A virtual tie is defined as total scores within 5 points of each other. Judges may need to confer to ensure fairness and consistency in the rating process.

• 50% Overall Ability (includes difficulty, expression, material selection, taste, execution)
• 25% Rhythm
• 25% Tone

Last year’s instrument contest showcased another dazzling display of virtuosity in the Wildflower Pavilion and the finals on the main stage. Congrats to all the 2021 finalists:

Banjo

• 1st place: Ricky Mier (San Rafael, CA)
• 2nd place: Liam Purcell (Boone, NC)
• 3rd place: Colton Kerchner (Boone, NC)

Flatpick Guitar

• 1st place: Greg Schochet (Boulder, CO)
• 2nd place: Eli Slocumb (Fort Collins, CO)
• 3rd place: Charlie Stevens (Fort Collins, CO)

Mandolin

• 1st place: Eli Slocumb (Fort Collins, CO)
• 2nd place: Liam Purcell (Boone, NC)
• 3rd place: Jean-Baptiste Cardineau (Boulder, CO)

Fiddle

• 1st place: Sam Stage (Raleigh, NC)
• 2nd place: Jackson Earles (Boulder, CO)
• 3rd place: Liam Purcell (Boone, NC)

Dobro

• Due to last-minute cancellations, we were not able to hold the Dobro contest