June 5-7
Southern Guitar Festival & Competition; Columbia, South Carolina
Competitions for several different categories, including ensembles, college/professional (no age limit), grades 9-12 (as of May 2014), and grades 8 and below. Master classes, workshops; concerts featuring Finnish guitarist Otto Tolonen, the Juanito Pascual New Flamenco Trio, Andre Machado and Galestro-Smith Duo. Registration deadline May 30. southernguitarfest.com
June 5-7
Memphis Acoustic Guitar Festival, Memphis, Tennessee
Biennial fest. More than 70 luthiers from all over showing hundreds of guitars, including some classical models; many are makers who don’t sell to stores. Play them or watch others play them—lots of talented musicians on hand. 24 workshops, too. memphisguitarfest.com
June 10-14
Classical Minds Festival and Competition; Pasadena, Texas
At San Jacinto College in the Houston metro area. Two youth divisions of competition—Junior (9-13) and High School (13-19). Master classes, lessons, lectures, student recitals, concerts. classicalmindsfestival.org
June 17-21
Boston Guitar Fest X: The Eternal Feminine; Boston, Massachusetts
Young Guitarists Workshop begins June 15. Youth competitions for elementary/middle school students and one for high school. Also Adult Competition. Concerts and master classes by Oscar Ghiglia, Xuefei Yang, and performances featuring fest director Eliot Fisk, Zaira Meneses, Kim Perlak, Jennifer McNeil, Maarten Stragier, others. At Northeastern University. bostonguitarfest.org/2015
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June 19-21
Hamilton International Guitar Festival and Competition; Hamilton, Ontario
Lessons, workshops, concerts, and luthier showcase. Concerts by Gaelle Solal (France), Miodrag Zerdoner (Bosnia), Rene Izquierdo (Cuba), Will Douglas (U.S.), competition finalists. Put on by Guitar Hamilton. guitarhamilton.com
June 18-21
New Mexico Classical Guitar Festival; Albuquerque, New Mexico
At the University of New Mexico. Concerts, master classes, lectures. A world premiere by Andrew York; also music from Rene Izquierdo, Roberto Capocchi, Michael Chapdelaine, Craig Russell and Calvin Hazen, guitar orchestras and student showcase. newmexicoclassicalguitarfestival.org
June 23-28
Guitar Foundation of America International Convention and Competition; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Guests include the Assad Brothers, Pavel Steidl, VIDA Guitar Quartet, Pablo Sainz Villegas, and Xuefei Yang. Hosted by Oklahoma City University and local host Matthew Denman. guitarfoundation.org
June 26-July 1
15th Guitar Seminar at Mannes; New York City
At Mannes College, the New School of Music. Workshops, master classes, ensemble coaching, performances featuring Scott Tennant (LAGQ), Rene Izquierdo, Laura Oltman, Michael Newman, Joao Luiz (Brasil Guitar Duo), Duo Cantabile, others. mannesguitar.com
June 28-July 12
Le Domaine Forget Guitar Competition; Saint– Irénée, Quebec
Two-week young guitarists and advanced instruction programs, culminating in competitions in both categories. 5 Rang Saint Antoine, C.P. 672, Saint-Irénée (QC) G0T 1V0, Canada. domaineforget.com/en/1/stages/guitar
Above is a listing of some of the upcoming guitar festivals and competitions on the horizon. We understand that the deadline for entry in some of these competitions might have already passed by the time you see this, but that should not prevent you from making an inquiry about participating, as some competitions will accept late entries for an additional fee. And of course, all are welcome to attend as spectators.
Don’t see your favorite fall festival here? Drop us a line with details (and/or web links) by June 20 and we’ll try to put the information in the Fall 2015 issue, which will be out in late August. (Similarly, the news deadline for the Winter 2015 issue—out in late November—is September 20.) We’ll reprint the fall events in the next issue, too, and have more to announce. Email all correspondence to editors.cg@stringletter.com.