*Registration will begin at 9:00 am on the Saturday morning of the contest. Contestants must be at the contest stage by 9:45 on Saturday to draw for initial order of appearance in the preliminary round. There are three categories of competition: Traditional, Contemporary, and Open. Contestants are allowed to enter one, or all of these categories. There will be a $10.00 entry fee for each category.
*Contestants must be prepared to play two tunes at each contest appearance. No tune shall be played more than once during all appearances of a contestant. Performances are limited to three minutes per tune. Points will be deducted if a performance exceeds the allowed time frame.
*The top five places in the Preliminary Competition in each category will advance to the final round to determine the winner for that category.
*Contest rules will be reviewed and discussed the day of the contest.
*All decisions of the judges and contest committee will be final.
Category Specific Rules:
Traditional Thumbpicking
*Contestants in this category will be required to perform tunes which demonstrate thumb picking in a traditional manner, such as any Merle Travis, or early Chet Atkins tunes.
*Contestants are required to play tunes which use a steady and alternating bass pattern with their thumb. This may be performed utilizing a thumb pick, or bare thumb. Finger picks may be used. No flat picks are allowed.
*All instruments used must be electric or acoustic guitars. Competitors will have the option to run direct, mic the instrument, or use an amplifier. Effect units are allowed.
*Judging will be on traditional thumbpicking ability, rhythm and timing, tone quality, and tuning.
Contemporary Thumbpicking
*Contestants in this category will be required to perform tunes which demonstrate thumb picking in a contemporary manner such as later Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel, Doyle Dykes, and Jerry Reed.
*Contestants are required to play tunes which use a steady and alternating bass pattern with their thumb. This may be performed utilizing a thumb pick, or bare thumb. Finger picks may be used. No flat picks are allowed.
*All instruments used must be electric or acoustic guitars. Competitors will have the option to run direct, mic the instrument, or use an amplifier. Effect units are allowed.
*Judging will be on contemporary thumbpicking ability, rhythm and timing, tone quality, and tuning.
Open
*Contestants in this category may perform tunes in any style they wish other than thumbpicking (rock, bluegrass, country, blues, jazz, etc.).
*Contestants are required to play tunes which do not use a steady and alternating bass pattern with their thumb. This category is open to any type of pick or method of picking including a straight pick. Fingerstyle is allowed in this category as long as there is no accompanying thumb.
*All instruments used must be electric or acoustic guitars. Competitors will have the option to run direct, mic the instrument, or use an amplifier. Effect units are allowed.
*Judging will be on overall playing ability, performance, tone quality, and tuning.
Please contact the NTPHF with any questions or comments regarding contest rules.
