ANNOUNCEMENT for 2020 and in to the future

[close2u]

As some of you may have already anticipated, the competition is to be suspended from January 2020.

The break in proceedings may be a hiatus, may be a sabbatical or may be a longer period of dormancy.

It is with quite a heavy heart that I make this announcement.

It has brought out so much of the good in people and allowed people to blossom in ways unexpected and has showcased so much talent.

Richard

[brianlarsen]

Ahhh Richard,

The writing was on the wall and this is indeed a passing of an era 

I entered the competition 10 weeks after picking up the guitar for the first time and every one since (bar the last one).
It has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience as well as educational- and really helpful in furthering my progress.
I'd like to thank you and Lieven for all the effort you put in, treating each entry seriously, offering such helpful advice and encouragement, not just for the participants, but for everyone following the comp.

It's been such an enjoyable experience for so many, I feel confident it will rear its head again every now and again in the future- maybe when I've learnt to play
(who knows, the mods might even think about doing one of their own one day?  )

In the meantime, good luck to all the current entries.
I look forward to perusing Mr. Sandercoe's comments on his return.

Ta




 

[CT]

I understand that the competitions were highly motivational for a lot of members. That's perfectly fine. It always seemed like the wrong approach to me. I sort of dodged that area for the most part because it made me uncomfortable liking one person's track and not another's. They felt too much like beauty contests to me.

Challenge yourself, don't compete with other guitarists. Try and be a better player today than you were yesterday. Stack a bunch of those days together and you can become the player you want to be (or were meant to be). Steady improvement and finding your own voice will be its own reward. Don't compare yourself to your peers, be unique, and go at your own pace and in your own direction. I'm nowhere near where I want to be musically, and could never see how a competition would get me any closer to being a better player. 

[DavidP]

Thanks Richard.

I assume the reason for this decision would be based primarily on Justin's availability to listen and comment, plus maybe even the time to spend with the chosen entrant in the Skype lesson.  I know it also takes considerable effort from you and Lieven to listen and comment.

As a regular entrant, I thank you all for all you contributed to this initiative.  The deeper critique I received was most helpful and encouraging.  It was something extra to have had feedback from Justin, being the Teacher and a real pro recording and performing musician.  And of course I was privileged to have been picked once and spend some time with Justin. The feedback and encouragement from him in that hour was a massive boost to my confidence.

I say picked since for me I never saw the winner to be the person who was the best in the usual sense of the winner of a contest.  The criteria and rationale for the choice made was always unpredictable to me. I think it always made sense to me but also usually I could make a case for pretty much every entry, each entry always having its own particular merits related to the performer.

Thank you also to every member who shared their performances. It has been a pleasure to listen and watch and learn from the critique you received.  Which for me is much as it is in the other areas where people share, just without Justin's critique.

So the Contest section is closed, long live AVOYP, see you all over there for more music, feedback and encouragement.

[DarrellW]

I see it as being a little bit sad but understandable, it’s been very time consuming for the judges and for administration so that’s it, no worries!
However maybe it could be replaced by a poll for the most regular contributors to the AVOYP section, then it would give people more of an incentive to post on there!

[Balamuthiah]

I am going to miss the competition. Not been a regular but every time I entered it was good. It's understandable that we shouldn't "compete" with other entrants and the perspective of having to like some and not like some but I kinda enjoyed the challenge. It wasn't a competition of play and record something. There was always a theme  as to what kind of music to play and whether it was a solo effort or a collaboration. It was similar to the improv challenge in that regard.

What was more is the fact that we get feedback from Justin himself. Which is cool let alone the fact that we get a free Skype lesson from the man himself, if we win. That is a dream opportunity and a grand motivation to learn songs that we may or may not learn otherwise (depending on the contest's criteria). And I'm happy to have had that chance.

Moving forward, I'd like to have challenges. AVOYP is good to keep you going but challenges seem to take that extra step of going out of the box I feel. So maybe keep the contests going without having to judge within a time frame? And no Skype lessons so that's time saved too. Maybe something that could be considered. But I will respect any decision taken.

[CT]

I feel these competitions run the risk of giving folks a false sense of accomplishment, and conversely deflating others that try hard and never win. The criteria for "winning" was never all that clear. The entries are judged and a winner emerges.

The same can be said for our YouTube and Soundcloud channels. Did we really accomplish something special by picking up "X" number of subscribers, likes and views? Folks get millions of views and likes for opening a cardboard box from Amazon. A really good player with a handful of subscribers is still a really good player.

At the end of the day none of this makes us a better and more creative musician. That's not to say that these things are not without value. Some of the online data has helped me. 

[Balamuthiah]

True that about the relationship between the number of followers or subscribers and the the actual talent or value of the musician or music respectively. But such statistics have always been done. I read somewhere that Robert Johnson was considered a failure in his days since he sold not more than a few 1000 copies. There is always a number printed on news as to how many people attended a show to tell how the show went (Led Zeppelin reunion was the most I think). But nothing takes away from the true value of the musician or his music. I just saw them as a motivation to make new music based on a random theme within a time frame. More or less what a recording company would want if I had made it big. And they have the top 100 list too. Does that mean number 1 song was better than the number 5 song? Maybe. It’s not a competition for being the best among members it’s about trying to bring out the best in yourself. The result doesn’t matter to me personally.

Edit: just something I remembered friendly rivalries actually had brought about amazing music in the past too. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. The Beatles and The Beach Boys come to mind.

[brianlarsen]

@ Clint

You’re right of course-
It’s pointless running a ‘competition’ with such ill-defined criteria if winning is the goal.
I have no idea how long it has been running for, but I presume one reason for starting it was to encourage and enthuse the good forum-folk to participate and share where they were at, the prize of a skype session with Justin being an incentive to lure us out of shyness/passivity.
I believe it has fulfilled its role in this sense.

I feel these competitions run the risk of giving folks a false sense of accomplishment, and conversely deflating others that try hard and never win.

You’re right here too-
Every time I entered, I thought: “If I put out a song at the edge of my ability, surely I'll win”.
Every single time I was deflated when it wasn’t me!
Still, I enjoyed the process immensely; it egged me on to try to be more creative and I learnt a lot along the way. I would not hesitate to take part in the future- just for the fun of it.

Karma works in funny ways and someone was smiling on me when I received a Christmas present in the form of a Skype session with Justin this time last year 

Last but not least, I appreciate your participation in a process you are ambiguous about.
Your comments usually made me smile 

[CT]

I appreciate the honesty and different perspectives. All good points. 

[Garfield]

Thank you to all that helped with the competition. It started just after I joined and I entered most times. Sometimes I wouldn't have anything prepared as time had got away from me but at the last minute I'd try and put something together. Mot so much to compete but to take part. I for one felt there was a real community spirit amongst the competition entrants.

Certainly I found the whole thing very motivational. It gave me a reason to get a song together and I'd usually go for something that I considered a bit special. I know you can do the same thing in AVOYP but to have a deadline, judges and fellow competitors made it a bit different. For me certainly without the deadline I'd have let loads of projects slip away. I've kind of now  found playing at open mics to be similar and that you have fellow performers and it's a monthly cycle. Obviously when I started I would never have done an open mic and I don't think I'd be doing them now without the comp.

I totally understand time constraints and I'd just like to thank everyone involved. For me it made me a better player and I am forever grateful.

Sent from my SM-A530F using JustinGuitar Community mobile app

[Fourtwo]

Thank you to all that helped with the competition. It started just after I joined and I entered most times. Sometimes I wouldn't have anything prepared as time had got away from me but at the last minute I'd try and put something together. Mot so much to compete but to take part. I for one felt there was a real community spirit amongst the competition entrants.

Certainly I found the whole thing very motivational. It gave me a reason to get a song together and I'd usually go for something that I considered a bit special. I know you can do the same thing in AVOYP but to have a deadline, judges and fellow competitors made it a bit different. For me certainly without the deadline I'd have let loads of projects slip away. I've kind of now  found playing at open mics to be similar and that you have fellow performers and it's a monthly cycle. Obviously when I started I would never have done an open mic and I don't think I'd be doing them now without the comp.

I totally understand time constraints and I'd just like to thank everyone involved. For me it made me a better player and I am forever grateful.

Sent from my SM-A530F using JustinGuitar Community mobile app

You've nailed it Gareth - I could not have expressed it better. I hope Justin et al replace this comp with something just as developmentally challenging and rewarding.
Neil

[DanniTSI3]

This is sad news indeed, but I also understand what a massive undertaking it must be for all the judges and Justin each quarter listening, critiquing, responding, deciding, with a growing community of subscribers I'm assuming the comp has grown over its span.

I was very lucky to get a skype lesson with Justin through the competition (will post about that separately) and the competitions were definitely a motivator... most people enjoy working to a deadline, it puts real pressure on you to get something in, put the practice in etc. I mainly entered the comps to get the feedback, especially from the man himself.

I think for me, one of the downsides of it is that its easy to get into a one-track mind where you are focusing on the competitions at the expense of other practice. I have fallen off the lesson bandwagon in a heavy way in the last few months (really trying to get back onto this for Feb!)

[john256]

It's a shame and I hope it will return, even if far more infrequently but regardless the contest format has unequivocally improved my performance skills and my self confidence.
The judging criteria may have been very subjective but for me the time pressure and the direct feedback have been great motivators.
I haven't necessarily enjoyed every moment - lots of time spend banging my head when I screw up the final bar on the Nth take or realise the recording didn't work or... - but this is valuable experience for anyone wanting to have other people hear their music rather than play for their own enjoyment alone.

Justin & co - thank-you so much for all the time you've put into this.

[LievenDV]

Following up on Richard's opening post;

Expecation management is key.
We still encourage you to post your productions of course

We'll be looking for ways to encourage you (and each other) to learn, create, produce and share your musical projects here; whether it is in a form of a competition or not.
The prizes are a nice extra but that shouldn't be the real take away for any of you

If the critique and lessons are valuable for you, I'll repeat what I wrote above:
expectation management is key.

If you post something, explicitly ask for feedback if you want it.
You want feedback on lyrics? guitar playing? tuning of the vocals? production value? vibe? originality?
Are there parts you -don't- want feedback on because it's obvious your mic isn't the best or your tuning was a bit off? mention it when you post

Keep playing and progressing.
Some day it might be back.
Perhaps in another form.
In the meantime, we're still the same forum.

Love you all,
LievenDV

[close2u]

How many times Lieven makes a post and I can do naught but sit back in admiration and think: that is it, that sums it up and encapsulates the entire spirit.

Well said my friend.

[pkboo3]

Sending love & support to you all. It’s been an awesome ride and still going on in other ways besides the contests. Still giving/receiving helpful constructive criticisms in all the ways mentioned by LievenDV above.  Love this forum!


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