National Flatpick Guitar Championship 2023 | Walnut Valley Festival Winfield, KS

[@AdamCantor]

Props to Hayden for playing on after a string broke!

[@AcousticOne]

Great picker ! The show must go on👏👏👏👏👏

[@russ6541]

so sad too he was ripping it up and got interrupted

[@natestandley3124]

Lucky to have any strings left destroying that guitar like that

[@Emmetgriffin9]

Fuckin a right 🎉🎉🎉🎉 killed it 😮😮❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@wombatburrito5896]

That was pretty dope. My heart definitely skipped a beat when I heard that string break.

[@natemink572]

Chapman Welsh's playing is absolutely fantastic

[@elmoblatch9787]

His friends call him "chappy" or "ol chap" or even "chap stick" on occasion.

[@gcdrt6dyufiy]

he was the most melodically interesting.

[@TheRealKenF]

Found this video randomly and I’m glad I heard him first. I enjoyed his playing. Beautiful chords.

[@JayBigDadyCy]

This is the kind of competition where the real winner is us for getting to hear such sublime music. I have nfc why this was in my feed, but I'm sure glad it was!

[@cottontail75]

Chapman Welch has been a friend of mine for more than 30 years. He is one of the most amazing humans, musicians, composers, and guitarists I personally know. He deeply influenced my guitar playing and musicianship early on and continues to today. I am incredibly happy to see him make it to this competition and to the finals. I hope he returns next year. All the guitarists performing in this segment were amazing and he belongs up there with the best of them. Much love, my friend!

[@pizzaface4628]

Does he have any recordings out anywhere or post on social media? I’d love to hear more of his playing!

[@bjonesehc]

Chapman Welch had something different in his playing. Superb stuff!

[@CollingsGuitars]

Congratulations to all of the performers and winners on some spectacular pickin! We're proud to be such long-standing sponsors of Walnut Valley and look forward to many future festivals and competitions. And, of course, a special shout out to Ian Ly for his first place performance! Ian, we hope that CW inspires even more music from you and you enjoy it for many years to come. - The Collings Crew

[@takeadeepbreath6053]

Thank you so much for being such generous sponsor all these years. He couldn’t stop playing it soon as he got it home, and of course took it with him to IBMA. It really showcase well and for the first time ever, he left the Martin home😊

[@CollingsGuitars]

@@takeadeepbreath6053 So happy to hear, and it was a pleasure meeting Ian at IBMA!

[@matthewpai]

I was wondering what the details of this guitar are ?

[@babagadoush1]

Well done Collings

[@752brickie]

Wow my guitars just jumped off the wall and left the room. I think I heard the backdoor slam as they left ! Thank you for the beautiful music . In days like these it is nice to see something that is actually GOOD FOR A CHANGE ! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU !!!

[@thomasmorse4042]

Mine slammed the case shut and won’t let me touch her.

[@taulitaulington197]

Now I'm not quite sure how you can judge somebody making art, let alone hold championships about it, but those musicians all sound wonderful! ♥

[@garywhitt98]

Right?

[@OldmanSk8ing]

Yes I thought the three finalists were the best though. Maybe they were cleanest most on the beat. Least amount of buzzing. Who knows? They all walk out with new guitars. That’s pretty cool.

[@mikehaggerton4412]

Thanks from Scotland for making this wonderful video available to flatpickers of all levels around the world. Well done everyone involved, competitors and volunteer organisers. Keeping it live.

[@darioarco]

Wow, I think I love everything about this festival. It's great to see that even in 2023 there are still these down-to-earth festivals, where the focus is just on music and the passion that comes along with it. Warms my heart.

[@stonerdemon]

That Ian kid has it, he really deserved 1st place. It's so inspiring to see these fine people keeping their traditions alive, proud of their legacy and passing the torch to the new blood.

[@karmakarrot7960]

Np he didn't. he wasn't even close to the best.

[@wolfgangbrenner9039]

so effortless and not even playing on his limit

[@mbeecher9921]

Ian was by far technically the best.

[@CrimeCraftADHD]

You have no clue what youre talking about keyboard warrior @@karmakarrot7960

[@daviddelossantos6075]

Mike Cramer had a very easy-going, smooth style that I liked. All the performers were wonderful. Wish I could have been there.

[@FlatpickingNM]

A big thank you to the Acoustic Shoppe for posting this great video. It has been hard to find good videos on the flatpick competition at Winfield in years past.

[@karennewell8085]

Never get tired of the sheer musicianship.

[@davidholton9667]

Hello how are you? So sorry for the infringe on your privacy. Beautiful song

[@Mrsournotes2]

Thanks Chapman’s for providing the videos of the contests, really appreciate it.

[@nwohioan]

Really enjoyed Chapman's playing - nice tune and nice tone. Great playing everyone.

[@stax56]

So much talent on one stage. Hayden killed it I tells ya

[@bill-465]

I thought Chapman's first tune was the most thoughtful, musical piece of all of them. The melody remained throughout the whole performance.

[@carole8312]

Thanks for filming and posting this. Much appreciated.

[@davidholton9667]

Hello how are you? So sorry for the infringe on your privacy. Beautiful song

[@judomoto]

After a turbulent weekend … this puts the soul at ease. The goodness is oozing

[@walt4670]

I sure do look forward to this every year. Thank you for filming and sharing, and certainly thank you to all the hardworking and talented musicians.

[@AcousticShoppe]

Thanks for watching!

[@crazyangus862]

Thanks very much for posting this. So much unreal talent out there in the flatpicking world. Love seeing this.

[@johnr8820]

Saw Ian Ly’s performance last year and really dug his playing…killer stuff he definitely earned that first place spot!

[@joeosborn123]

Big two weeks for Ian. Won the guitar contest, then Band of the Year at the IBMA Momentum Awards with Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band. 😅❤

[@riceflatpicking4954]

Thank you guys! I still don’t understand why Walnut Valley will not release complete DVDs in their entirety of all the contestants in each category I would buy every single year. They are sitting on a gold mine and have no clue.

[@dennisgoans701]

Copyright

[@dmacnic]

That was fun to watch. All of them are great! A lot of tasty playing

[@codefreelance2182]

Everyone was phenomenal. Great pickin!

[@DomesticatedDemon]

I knew that kid was gonna win as soon as he started picking 👏🏻 Well done sir!

[@rodneycaupp5962]

Oh my what a treat... now back to the video...

[@henryswank]

Chapman Welch....he has been a musical genius since childhood. People need to know him. virtuosos all around. He is music embodied. Love hearing everything he plays

[@MVPhurricane]

man i loved watching all these guys, but holy cow do i love watching and listening to ian play. magnificent.

[@kindabluejazz]

It's so hard to be perfect on demand. Most recordings we hear are the best from multiple takes, and that spoils many listener's expectations. Bravo to all these guys for their years of hard work and willingness to put themselves out there to be publicly judged.

[@knowbuddy6282]

Man I liked them all . Everyone is really good I don’t know how you pick. All puns intended 👏

[@jamesreed6465]

I love watching the competition live. Then at night they come and jam with us mortals. Always love my week at Winfield.

[@AlexA99423]

Great to hear these fantastic musicians. Thanks team TAS. Looking forward to seeing and hearing the test of the contests.

[@johnmackie1]

Incredible they managed to get Wes Anderson to direct this

[@JoinMeInDeathBaby]

Very pastel colour palette

[@barryjdwyer]

Clean as country water! Great stuff from start to finish. Loved all of the players. Guitar is the winner here.

[@fergusdawson]

Mike Cramer was my favorite. Very stylish and soulful playing

[@josephpayne9011]

I liked him too! irish jig vibes. great tone too from his guitar and string choice.

[@pauldawn550]

Thanks to KZbin for having the function to slow down playback! I’ve just stumbled across my flat picking chop builder for this year! 😅 Awesome playing!

[@JesseBlueEads]

Ian is such a G. Fantastic improviser and so much fun to pick with!

[@mikeedmonston3209]

No idea how I got to this video, but I'm glad I did. Outstanding!

[@philmoore71]

same here

[@Steve-si8hx]

Something special about the way Hayden plays

[@johnnyxmusic]

A beautiful focus and urgency in his playing.

[@DarrylGoberMusic]

That was great fun to watch. Everyone was incredible!

[@nautifella]

Congratulations Ian. Very well done. I ain't got enough years left to practice enough to play on that stage.

[@mf5202]

Thank you for the song. Mr. Martin cheers me up as well...

[@ouyrwq]

Such unpretentious beauty and skill. The tone and progressions are so subtle and deft. As a trying to be flat picker, I am inspired by their approach and courage.

[@enrique5565]

Good luck with your journey!

[@sabeesunwar7558]

Great show.... Great flat pickers... Congratulatukns everyone 👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@1jahr3instrumente]

This is so live. Beautiful, the first tune. Thank you, guys, great job!

[@RobertFairweatherMusic]

Ian Ly...outstanding! Great from all...

[@jamesakers1175]

Congrats to a well deserved champion. 👏 🎉

[@malcolmclark604]

Beautiful guitar playing, a pleasure to listen to - thank you

[@AcousticOne]

They are all winners….great pickers here….not an easy gig. Edited: Big thanks Acoustic Shoppe❤

[@jaimejaimeChannel]

Love the guy who keeps going after his string breaks.

[@1993yaeger]

All of them were amazing!

[@curtismartell3006]

Thank you for posting this video! It's hard to find time for the picking championship with all the shennagins and concerts going on at WVFest. I'm enjoying this!

[@efremlee6990]

Sounds beautiful all of it

[@sanoj1969]

Fantastic. Thanks and sending greetings from Sweden.❤️❤️❤️

[@Wolferal]

Wow, these are some seriously fine musicians.

[@cathmar7394]

Clean picking.

[@MandolinSecrets]

Really good players! Inspiring!

[@barbaralancaster1012]

All of them are amazing players.

[@davidholton9667]

Hello how are you? So sorry for the infringe on your privacy. Beautiful song

[@BeastModeMusic.Guitar]

Thanks for posting!

[@MashaT22]

I really enjoyed seeing this! Thanks for posting these amazingly talented guitarists. It’s especially awesome to see some younger flat pickers playing music that really is part of Americana. I’m a NYC Slicker lol, but my family went on road trips to nearly every US state and most of eastern Canada for anywhere between 10 days to 3 weeks every summer depending on how much time my mom could get off from work. My widowed mom would save all year so we could pack up the van and make some amazing, unique memories after going through the traumatic experience of my dad being diagnosed with terminal colorectal cancer at age 37 and passing away just after he turned 41. Anyway, I was always really happy as a child, teen, and into my adulthood when we would pass through states that had live bluegrass and other forms of country music. I was never a huge fan of recorded mainstream country music - I really preferred rock, metal, pop punk, etc.; fortunately, my parents and grandparents always exposed us to a wide variety of music from our country and all over the world, so I always enjoyed and appreciated all types of genres. We would see all types of live music along the way on these trips, but bluegrass was always the most impactful and memorable. Seeing average people playing extraordinary music in intimate live settings like little gigs, museums, outdoor flea markets, etc. definitely impacted my younger self positively and helped me develop an appreciation for flat picking into my adulthood. I only started playing guitar in March 2020. I’m now 42. Not sure if I will ever learn to flat pick at a world class level, but I always learn some interesting techniques and ideas from bluegrass players. That being said, it’s really nice to see some of the best guitarists from around the country compete every year. Thanks so much for posting this footage! For the organizers of this competition, have you considered making an online contest possible? Or even a beginner/intermediate level online contest? Many people can’t travel due to poor health, lack of money to fund the trip, etc. It could be a great way to get many more people involved over the course of a month where the public and a panel of judges get to vote on the players who make it to the next round. I’d definitely love to partake in something like that. I’ve been disabled since 2003, but I became very ill in 2018 and have been homebound since 2019. It would be amazing to have the opportunity to take part in an online contest geared to players at the same level . It would be neat to get some prizes together, but it would still be plenty of fun without winning anything - or maybe it can raise money for a good cause like helping g people like me who are sick and can’t afford guitars/gear/accessories get some help (there is help out there for school children and veterans, but nothing else I’ve found that helps adults who are sick and have monetary hardships). If you’d be interested in organizing this type of event, please send me a private msg on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter (links in bio) so I can share my idea in more detail. Thanks! 🙏🏻😇🎸❤️

[@maxammo6282]

Okay I got a dumb question. What is the definition of flatpick. I'm a guitar player from a totally different genre. I've never heard of this.

[@gwynthegnome2050]

@@maxammo6282”Flatpicking” just means plucking the strings with a single, flat pick (in contrast to “finger picking,” which can be done with a curved pick on each finger or with no picks at all). It also entails plucking individual notes instead of strumming chords. So basically anyone who’s ever played a guitar solo is “flatpicking,” even though they may not use that term.

[@maxammo6282]

@@gwynthegnome2050 oh okay I get it, I kind of figured but I wasn't sure. Do you ever see any one from the metal genre entering any of these competitions ? I've seen some of these metal guys do some amazing things 🤯

[@TheFatCottonwood]

That was awesome! Broken string, my heart sank. What guitar was Mike Cramer playing there, something incredible! They all were awesome!

[@Redstagwsmnp]

An Olsen guitar. Big money

[@taylorbrower6790]

I did a little digging, it looks like it was actually a David Vincent Slope D dreadnought. From what I can find, he won it at the 2012 Minnesota flatpicking championships. I'm searching everywhere to find out what the woods are, and I can't seem to find it. I think that's a one off guitar David built specifically for the competition. Tonally, it reminds me of an oak and Adirondack guitar, maybe some sort of European spruce instead of red spruce. I really like it whatever it is, I'm gonna keep searching! :)

[@matanggonzales]

Fantastic!

[@livealoha50f]

all amazing - thanks for laying it down

[@Ojb_1959]

This brings a smile to my face and a party in my ears. 🤙🤠

[@LibbysBluegrassVideos]

So glad y'all videoed this again! I really enjoyed it. Congrats everyone! All the finalists were outstanding... Hayden did great when that string broke... and Ian sounded just like his teacher Jake - great tone and creativity!

[@ZzzzZz-pk2yq]

Those strings just couldn’t keep up with Hayden's pure talent! Well done!

[@Anke4559]

Greetings from Germany. I love the famous flatpicking.

[@normhardy]

Dang, how can they be this good? Time to practice more, I guess. Thanks for posting.

[@jsmcguireIII]

Noice Ian! Shoutout from Santa Cruz.

[@greekflatpicker]

Congrats to all!

[@alexanderlewis8351]

awesome peformance. Love the song tribute to Martin by the 1st place Ian. And the brake rotor ballast for the mic. character.

[@Venetiababy1]

These guitars all sound great!

[@anderjohmetallica]

Gee whiz how do you pick? All were just great. I did want to comment on Mike Cramer's version of Soldier's Joy. I love the way he gets down low on the song and hits the big strings!

[@MegaMatthewmc]

never heard of flat picking before, i have always wanted to learn fingerstyle but never been able to master it. i will be trying this out very soon thanks to these amazing players

[@tktspeed1433]

From what I read online, flat picking just means playing with a pick

[@TedBarton91]

@@tktspeed1433yeah that kinda confused me too 😂 wait, I’ve been doing this for two decades without realising it?

[@babagadoush1]

Dang that Collings is sweet!!!!

[@bshot_slays6851]

all of them great in their own right loved it

[@PhoenixCharredEagle]

This is awesome 👏

[@user-bx6jj6cm4v]

I watched the whole video, and the Judges picked the exact same way that I would have, but it's very difficult to judge when everyone is so good.

[@litemetal]

Hayden that was great 👍 the 6 string future is in good hands 🙌

[@litemetal]

I saw Joe Bonamassa, live , he broke a E string in the middle of a massive solo… he just played through it…it happens.

[@philmccrevis4493]

I've played a flat top guitar for 56 years. Not good, not bad. And I can't choose a 'winner.' They were all outstanding and I loved every note.

[@joseph2832]

Great Job IAN LY!

[@namnik1]

Baroque isn’t dead. Beautiful.

[@bubbaluvv]

At 13:28 that quick bend Danny did, thats what guitar was made for. Music to my ears

[@DavidHaile_profile]

Mike Cramer! He has no idea how closely I follow what he's been doing on KZbin. I've learned several tunes the way that he plays them, though not yet very clean. Those are great prizes!

[@benjaminsayers4300]

Lovely stuff. All these great players seem really humble and deserving, so I can't choose a favourite. I will say that Ian Ly deserved his prize, but they're all great. Technical as hell, but always melodic and accessible for the layman, should any be listening! What I take away as an inferior picker is the importance of a relaxed right hand action. Not just for tone and articulation, but for SWING! All the best players can swing, not just jazz guys. The great EVH certainly did (though not noted for his flat picking 😂)

[@tammyaikman1990]

Nothin beats live music , and talent

[@simon-oy6um]

Nice rendition of st annes reel even with a broken string ,deserves a prize 😊😊

[@davidc1334]

Hayden blew my mind amazing!!!

[@OldGuy2-m4c]

So beautiful. Pat ? won this in 2010 or so and he was my instructor for a few sessions. These guys are incredible

[@Sadowsky46]

Hayden is a great talent 😮 👍

[@gigistrus490]

That was just lovely.

[@tubesockets120v]

Now this is music 🎵

[@rudyspring2528]

This is nice. Everyone wins here.

[@kishintuchis7076]

NICE TO HEAR THE CONTESTENTS' GUITAR WITHOUT 5 BACKUP GUITARS SURROUNDING HIM . ALL ARE GREAT

[@joseph2832]

I was clapping at home lol!

[@lukeGGlee]

Chapman fella was playing some serene classical soundin music there for a good bit

[@cflow100]

Ian Ly was so smooth 15:40

[@jaypierce8994]

Watched the whole thing ,Loved it, I picked Ian the winner .

[@lonesomeness-w6h]

Hooray for everybody