The annual Walnut Valley Festival instrument contests unfailingly draw top competition in the various bluegrass and folk categories. 2025 saw the 53rd running of this venerable event, which also awarded cash prizes this year to songwriters for the first time.
Like so many prestigious competitions, the Walnut Valley championships have tended to be known to competitors and attendees alike simply by the place where it is held, Winfield, as in Winfield, KS. You’ll hear pickers discussing their summer plans asking, “You going to Winfield?”, just as they might for “Galax” or “Weiser,” even though both of those events have actual names as well.
A big draw, outside of the acclaim that comes with winning the National Flatpick Guitar Championship, or its instrumental equivalents, is that the top three finishers in each contest receive their choice among high-quality, hand-made, professional-grade instruments typically worth several thousand dollars, which are donated for this purpose.
Always held the third weekend in September, the Walnut Valley Festival combines these nine contests with stage performances by top bluegrass, old time, and Americana acts. Contestants must qualify to enter, typically by winning other similar competitions beforehand.
Here are the results of last week’s competitions, along with their prize choices.
National Flatpick Guitar Championship
- Carl Miner of Nashville, TN – Collings Winfield Model Guitar
- Adam Shier of Toronto, ON – Preston Thompson D-MA Guitar
- Jakob Thomas of South Charleston, WV – Martin HD-28 Modern Deluxe Guitar
Runners-up were Hayes Griffin of Columbus, OH and Kilby James of Toronto, ON.
National Bluegrass Banjo Championship
- Steven Moore of Saint Clairsville, OH – Deering Claico 5-String Banjo
- Brain Anderson of Rancho Cordova, CA – Deering Rustic Wreath 5-String Banjo
- Joey Gipson of Manchester, TN – Deering White Lotus 5-String Band
Runners-up were Jason Bales of Gatlinburg, TN and Gregg Welty of Atlanta, GA
National Mandolin Championship
- Carl Miner of Nashville, TN – Bourgeois M5-F Mandolin
- Gordon Parker of Mountain View, AR – $1,500 cash prize
- Myles Thompson of Nashville, TN – $750 cash prize
Runners-up included Roman Counterman of Cincinnati, OH and Alex Hawf of Eureka Springs, AR.
Old Time Fiddle Championship
- Josh Wills of Checotah, OK – 5-String Sandro Luciano Violin
- Mary Parker of Mountain View, AR – Ivan Bizof Violin
- Amanda Grapes Dellinger of South Salt Lake, UT – Luca Zerilli Violin
Runners-up included Hansen Doucette of Waller, TX and Edith Sigler of Wichita, KS.
International Fingerstyle Guitar Championship
- Hwajong Kim of Seoul, South Korea – Smith Winfield Model Guitar
- Chun-Lin Chang of Taipei City, Taiwan – Bourgeois TouchStone Signature Guitar
- Brandon Green of Beckly, WV – Taylor Builder’s Edition 814ce
Runners-up included Adam Cantor of Indianapolis, IN and Carl Miner of Nashville, TN.
National Hammer Dulcimer Championship
- Luke Vanderveer of North Richland Hills, TX – Songbird 17/16/8 Finch Chromatic Hammer Dulcimer
- Robert Miller of Pittsburgh, PA – Rick Thum 17/17 Professional Hammer Dulcimer
- Clifford White of Jefferson City, MO – Rick Thum Traveler Hammer Dulcimer
Runners-up included Greg Hulbert of Dexter, MI and Frank Tadeo of Santa Fe, NM.
International Autoharp Championship
- Kyle Burke of Lincoln, NE – D’aigle Cascade 15-chord Autoharp
- Loriann Clayton Bethard of Kansas City, MO – Whippoorwill Acoustics 15-bar autoharp
- Michael Poole, Chapel Hill, NC – $50 in cash.
Runners-up included Gabriel Colbeck of Ballwin, MO, Ida Finney of Winfield, KS, and Shawn Scott of Winfield, KS.
National Mountain Dulcimer Championship
- Aaron Thornton from Bay St. Louis, MS – McSpadden 4FHMgMg-E Custom Mountain Dulcimer
- Elijah Wright of Kennard, TX – McSpadden 6FHWWB-E Baritone Mountain Dulcimer
- Keith Reynolds of Labette City, KS – FSGCC-E Scroll Head Cherry Ginger Mountain Dulcimer
Runners-up included De Cansler of Rochester, MN and David Kerwood of Arkansas City, KS.
Congratulations and well done all!
We’ll have some coverage of the NewSong Showcase next week.
