Speical note from the GMFC:

The Forty-Ninth Annual Grand Master Fiddler Championship is scheduled to be held on Saturday, September 5th and Sunday, September 6th, 2020 (Labor Day Weekend), in Nashville, Tennessee at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Like all public gatherings, this event may be affected by current health and safety conditions and will be subject to guidelines issued by the State of Tennessee and the Metro Government of Nashville and Davidson County.

The safety of our contestants, volunteers, audience, workers, sponsors and host are our most important consideration during this health emergency. We will work closely with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to plan and execute an event that complies with local guidance and protects all participants.  

We all hope the venue and events will be back to normal and safe for all soon.  Please check this page frequently for updates and also visit www.grandmasterfiddler.com and https://countrymusichalloffame.org/

The Forty-Nineth Annual Grand Master Fiddler Championship will be held on Saturday September 5th and Sunday September 6th, 2020 (Labor Day Weekend), in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in the Ford Theater.  Contestants from all over the world will come to compete.  In 2019, Ridge Roberts of Texas claimed the Championship.  Who will the 2020 Champion be?  Please plan to join us for the competition!

The Grand Master Fiddler Championship Inc. is organized as a Tennessee nonprofit and U.S. IRS 501(c)(3) charitable corporation, formed to educate about and perpetuate fiddling as an art form and cultural treasure. The corporation's primary focus is holding the annual Grand Master Fiddler Championship competition - an event that has started many young musicians on their way to a career in music. As a 501(c)(3) entity, all donations are tax deductible, and we welcome your support to promote and educate about fiddling. Fund-raising efforts are being planned in order to expand the competition, enhance our educational efforts, and to further the awareness of fiddling around the globe.

Fiddling laid the foundation of the WSM Grand Ole Opry and remains important to country and bluegrass music today. For a quarter-century, the contest was sponsored by WSM, the Grand Ole Opry, the Country Music Association, and later by Gaylord Entertainment.  When financially able, the GMFC makes donations to such charities as the Grand Ole Opry Trust Fund and the Bluegrass Trust Fund which benefit musicians in need.  We do this in honor of the contributions of the pioneers to country, bluegrass and traditional music. Many of these pioneers such as Roy Acuff, Porter Wagoner, "Uncle Jimmy" Thompson, Bill Monroe, Howdy Forrester and Tommy Jackson played the fiddle or were very involved with fiddling. We have also donate fiddles/violins to the W. O. Smith Community Music School in Nashville.

Please tell all your fiddle music friends, websites, discussion lists and other music sites about this web page! Let us hear from you and we will add you to the GMFC email list.



2019 Dr. Perry F. Harris Distinguished Fiddler Award Recipient Mark O'Connor.