September 27 saw the inaugural running of the Southeast Bluegrass Banjo Championship at Common John Brewing Co in Manchester, TN. Competitions were held for guitar, fiddle, mandolin, and reso-guitar as well as banjo, with a special 14-and-under category where all instruments were welcome.
Championship coordinator Joey Gipson tells us that things went very well on Saturday, and that he had a total of 60 contestants. He reports being quite pleased with this first year.
After two rounds of competition on the various instruments, the results were:
Banjo
- Brandon Green – $1,000 prize
- Anthony Howell – $500 prize
- Owen Piatt – $250 prize
Guitar
- Brandon Green – $500 prize
- Anthony Howell – $250 prize
- Nick Norris – $100 prize
Mandolin
- Ezekiel Green – $500 prize
- Tyler Andall – $250 prize
- Matthew Wingate – $100 prize
Dobro
- Brandon Green – $500 prize
- Rob Pearcy – $250 prize
- Steven Smiley – $100 prize
Fiddle
- Jacob Johnson – $500 prize
- Bonnie Norris – $250 prize
- Tyler Andall – $100 prize
14 and under
- Ella Derby (fiddle) – $500 prize
- Ezra Green (bass) – $250 prize
- Nash Grier (fiddle) – $100 prize
The top two 14-and-under finishers also received a new banjo from either Deering or Gold Tone.
Congratulations to Joey for a successful first year, and to all the winners!
