2009 Walnut Valley Festival Mandolin Contest Winners

By Mandolin Cafe
September 18, 2009 - 6:45 pm

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L-R: Rex Preston from Bath, United Kingdom (3rd Place); Bryan McDowell of Canton, NC (1st Place), and Josh Bailey of Victoria, TX (2nd Place)

Winfield, Kans. — The 2009 Walnut Valley Mandolin Contest has concluded and the winners have been announced.

21 participants represented 18 different states as well as Japan and the United Kingdom. The final five contestants selected to play for the top spots were from Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and the UK.

First place went to Bryan McDowell, an 18 year-old from Canton, North Carolina. Bryan has played the mandolin for seven years and will enter this year's fiddle and guitar contests as well.

Second place went to Josh Bailey from Victoria, Texas, repeating his runner-up position from last year. Josh is currently working construction but hopes to attend college in the near future. He is a member of the Bailey Family Band.

Third place went to Rex Preston from Bath, England who is attending the Walnut Valley Festival for the first time. Rex is a University student majoring in music and plays in a band called "The Scoville Units".

The Walnut Valley Festival is held every year during the third weekend of September.

Additional information:
Festival web site

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