International classical guitar competitions are public events designed to identify and award outstanding classical guitar soloists, ensembles, and composers. They allow artists to promote themselves and gain exposure. Some competitions also have newly composed "set" pieces which serve to increase the classical guitar repertoire.
The guitar seems to be the absentee in musical competitions until the Second World War.
In recent years, many international classical guitar competitions were established.
Competition Name | Town | Country | Last year active | 1st prize cash, USD |
---|---|---|---|---|
Parkening International Guitar Competition | Malibu, CA | USA | 2019 | 30,000 |
Baltimore International Guitar Competition | Baltimore, MD | USA | 2022 | 35,000($20,000 Cash Award & $15,000 Augustine Career Award) |
JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Concerto Competition (biennial) | Buffalo, New York | USA | 2020 | 12,500 |
International Guitar Competition Maurizio Biasini (biennial) | Bologna, Basel, San Francisco, Paris | Italy, Switzerland, France and USA | 2021 | 12,000 |
Guitar Foundation of America International Concert Artist Competition (ICAC) | New every year | USA | 2023 | 10,000 |
Dr. Luis Sigall International Music Competition (Guitar every 5 years) | Viña del Mar | Chile | 2017 | 10,000 |
Miami International GuitART Festival and Concert Artist Performance Competition | Miami, FL | USA | 2018 | 5,000 |
Wilson Center Guitar Competition & Festival | Wisconsin | USA | 2019 | 5,000 |
Festival y Concurso Internacional de Guitarra de la Habana (biennial) | Havana | Cuba | 2018 | 5,000 |
Culiacan International Guitar Competition Archived 2016-01-09 at the Wayback Machine | Culiacán, Sinaloa | Mexico | 2020 | 4,000 |
Indiana International Guitar Festival & Competition | Bloomington, IN | USA | 2019 | 4,000 |
Texas International Guitar Festival and Competition | Dallas, TX | USA | 2020 | 3,000 |
Guitar Symposium & Competition | Columbus, GA | USA | 2020 | 2,000 |
LASP Classical Guitar Festival & Youth Competition | Milwaukee, WI | USA | 2022 | 500 |
Competition Name | Town | Country | Last year active | 1st prize cash, USD |
---|---|---|---|---|
Tampere Guitar Festival | Tampere | Finland | 2023 | none |
Alhambra International Guitar Competition | Valencia | Spain | 2018 | 15909 (€14,000) |
Frauchi International Competition (biennial: odd years) | Moscow | Russia | 2021 | 14205 (€12,500) |
International Guitar Competition "Francisco Tarrega" | Benicàssim | Spain | 2021 | 13636 (€12,000) |
International Guitar Competition Maurizio Biasini (biennial) | Bologna, Basel, San Francisco, Paris | Italy, Switzerland, France and USA | 2021 | 13636 (€12,000) |
Michele Pittaluga International Classical Guitar Competition | Alessandria | Italy | 2018 | 11364 (€10,000) |
International Classical Guitar Competition Robert J. Vidal | Barbezieux | France | 2016 | 11364 (€10,000) |
Andrés Segovia International Guitar Competition | Almuñecar | Spain | 2019 | 11364 (€10,000) |
Miquel Llobet International Guitar Competition | Barcelona | Spain | 2022 | 6250 (€5,000) |
Paganini Guitar Festival Competition | Parma | Italy | 2023 | 2420 (€2,000) |
European Bach Guitar award | Darmstadt | Germany | 2022 | 10331 (€8,000) |
Viseu International Guitar Competition (biennial: even years) | Viseu | Portugal | 2018 | 9091 (€8,000) |
Concurso Internacional de Guitarra Clásica Gredos San Diego | Madrid | Spain | 2018 | 5682 (€5,000) |
Budapest International Guitar Competition & Festival | Budapest | Hungary | 2017 | 5682 (€5,000) |
Silesian Guitar Autumn, Jan Edmund Jurkowski Memorial Guitar Competition | Tychy | Poland | 2018 | 5181 (zł 20,000) |
Incontri Chitarristici di Gargnano - Concorso Internazionale | Gargnano | Italy | 2019 | 4773 (€4,200) |
Liechtenstein Guitar Festival ligita, International ligita Guitar Competition | Eschen | Liechtenstein | 2018 | 4545 (€4,000) |
International Guitar Competition “Ruggero Chiesa - Città di Camogli” Archived 2020-02-23 at the Wayback Machine (biennial: even years) | Camogli | Italy | 2018 | 4545 (€4,000) |
International Guitar Competition Heinsberg (biennial: odd years) | Heinsberg | Germany | 2017 | 4545 (€4,000) |
International Guitar Competition "Ville d'Antony" | Antony | France | 2018 | 3977 (€3,500) |
London International Guitar Competition | London | UK | 2018 | 3750 (£3,000) |
International Competition of Guitar - Mottola | Mottola | Italy | 2018 | 3409 (€3,000) |
International Guitar Competition Fernando Sor | Rome, Madrid | Italy, Spain | 2018 | 3409 (€3,000) |
Linares International Guitar Competition "Andrés Segovia" | Linares | Spain | 2018 | 3409 (€3,000) |
Dutch Guitar Foundation International Guitar Concerto Competition | Groningen | Netherlands | 2020 | 3409 (€3,000) |
Koblenz International Guitar Competition | Koblenz | Germany | 2018 | 3409 (€3,000) |
Iserlohn International Guitar Competition | Villigst and Iserlohn | Germany | 2021 | 3409 (€3,000) |
International Guitar Competition Nürtingen (biennial: even years) | Nürtingen | Germany | 2018 | 3409 (€3,000) |
European Classical Guitar Competition "Enrico Mercatali" | Gorizia | Italy | 2023 | 2841 (€2,500) |
International Guitar Competition "Paris Guitar Foundation" | Paris | France | 2019 | 2841 (€2,500) |
Zagreb Guitar Festival and International Guitar Competition | Zagreb | Croatia | 2017 | 2841 (€2,500) |
Twents Gitaar Festival | Enschede | Netherlands | 2018 | 1136 (€1,000) |
Bale-Valle Guitar[1][1] Competition | Bale-Valle | Croatia | 2022 | 1136
(€1,000) |
Transilvania International Classical Guitar Competition | Cluj-Napoca | Romania | 2023 | 1136 (€1,000) |
Sarajevo International Guitar Festival | Sarajevo | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2018 | none |
Volos international Guitar festival & competition | Volos | 2017 | none | |
International Guitar Competition Berlin | Berlin | Germany | 2018 | none |
Competition Name | Town | Country | Last year active | 1st prize cash, USD |
---|---|---|---|---|
Qingdao International Guitar Art Festival and Competition | Qingdao | China | 2019 | 15504 (RMB 100,000) |
Daejeon International Guitar Competition | Daejeon | South Korea | 2017 | 10000 |
International Guitar Festival China Changsha | Changsha | China | 2018 | 10000 |
Tokyo International Guitar Competition | Tokyo | Japan | 2018 | 9112 (¥1,000,000) |
Taiwan International Guitar Festival & Competition | Taipei | Taiwan | 2018 | 8000 |
Adelaide Guitar Festival and International Classical Guitar Competition | Adelaide | Australia | 2018 | 7519 (A$10,000) |
Altamira International Virtual Guitar Competition | Hong Kong | China | 2021 | 6500 |
Singapore international Guitar Festival and Competition | Singapore | Singapore | 2016 | 2000 |
Asia International Guitar Festival & Competition | Bangkok | Thailand | 2018 | none |
Competition Name | Town | Country | Last year active |
---|---|---|---|
Guitar Masters International Guitar Competition & Festival | Wroclaw | Poland | 2016 |
International Classical Guitar Competition Stefano Strata - città di Pisa | Pisa | Italy | 2015 |
Calcutta International Classical Guitar Festival & Competition | Kolkata | India | 2014 |
World Guitar Competition | Novi Sad | Serbia | 2013 |
International Guitar Competition Rene Bartoli | Aix-en-Provence | France | 2006 |
International Guitar Competition Mauro Giuliani | Bari | Italy | 2004 |
Competition Name | Town | Country | Last year active |
---|---|---|---|
LASP Classical Guitar Festival & Youth Competition | Milwaukee, WI | USA | 2022 |
International competition for young guitarists | Gauting | Germany | 2016 |
Gevelsberg Guitar Competition | Gevelsberg | Germany | 2016 |
International Competition for Young Guitarists «Andrés Segovia» | Monheim am Rhein | Germany | |
Terra Siculorum International Classical Guitar Festival and Competition | Odorheiu Secuiesc | Romania | |
Transilvania Youth Guitar Competition | Cluj Napoca | Romania | 2023 |
Vojvodina Guitar Fest International classical guitar competition | Novi Sad | Serbia | 2018 |
Modern criticism of guitar competitions is actually quite common. Some criticisms are that they are often judged by unqualified judges, that reward people for being technically proficient without regard to musicality. But concerning the judging of musicality, this is in itself controversial, as the question arises, on how to judge art on any objective level.[4]
Analysis of data at a piano competition, with many high-level participants, has made it doubtful that judges are able to make fully objective judgments; because there was a small correlation between the order of appearance of participants and their ranking:
On the other hand, if a competition has many professional-level artistic participants, it may not even be possible to make an objective judgment of who is "best"; because: given numerous professional-level artistic performers, there may not even be room for the concept of comparison; since this presumes the existence of a "best" interpretation, which is itself questionable (and would be a commercialization of art; viewing it from a mass-consumption or absolutist point of view).