Chapdelaine, who studied with Andrés Segovia, earned the distinction of winning the 20th annual National Fingerpicking Championship, traditionally dominated by steel string players, while playing on a nylon string classical guitar. He bested an international field of guitarist by playing a broad spectrum of musical genres ranging from traditional South American dance music to his own fingerstyle compositions, which included a blues number he calls Blue Chile. “The biggest thrill about winning Winfield was seeing how much people like my original compositions,” Chapdelaine said.

website: michaelchapdelaine.com