photo by: Courtesy of Kansas State Fiddling & Picking Championships

Grammy winner Dom Flemons will be the featured artist at the 45th Annual Kansas State Fiddling and Picking Championships.

The 45th annual Kansas State Fiddling and Picking Championships, or “FidPick,” will take place Aug. 23 at South Park.

This year, the event will feature a performance by Grammy-winner Dom Flemons, eight competitions, food and beverage vendors, art vendors, family-friendly activities, jam circles and more. The event, from noon to 5 p.m., is free and open to the public.

Flemons is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and a founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops. He is known as “The American Songster” as his repertoire covers over 100 years of American roots music, including country, folk, bluegrass, Americana and the blues.

Competitions will include string band, fiddle, youth fiddle, banjo, mandolin, flatpick guitar, fingerstyle guitar and miscellaneous acoustic instruments. All ages and skill levels are encouraged to compete. The winners of each competition receive a cash prize, and the Kansas State String Band of the Year will also have the opportunity to perform at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield this September.

The event schedule and details can be found at fidpick.org. Attendees are encouraged to bring blankets or lawn chairs and instruments for jam sessions. In the event of inclement weather, the contests and featured artist performance will go on inside the Granada and Lucia in downtown Lawrence.

In addition to the championships event, FidPick is collaborating with the Kaw River Roots Festival to host a FidPick pre-party concert featuring local bands Unfit Wives, MAW and The Twangles on Aug. 22 (gates open at 5 p.m.). This free, all-ages event will be in the 800 block of Pennsylvania Street in front of Cider Gallery and Lawrence Beer Company.

The Kansas State Fiddling and Picking Championships is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion and preservation of traditional American acoustic and folk music. It is funded solely by donations, sponsorships and grants. This year’s event is made possible by the Doug DuBois Harmony Fund, the City of Lawrence and Unmistakably Lawrence, among other sponsors.