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Being a musician/guitarist, it is always inspirational to experience a musical performance by musicians who are masters of their instruments. From the opening arpeggios to the final chord that was played during the second evening of competition during the sixth bi-annual JoAnn Falletta Guitar Concerto Competition, the entire evening was very inspirational.



The guitar concerto competition was broadcast live on WNED Classical FM 94.5 from the WNED-TV studio in downtown Buffalo on Thurs., June 5. Marcin Kuzniar (one of eight contestants selected from a world-wide field of guitarists) was the second performer of the evening.



As each guitarist was introduced, the studio ran a brief taped interview before they came out to perform. During Marcin’s interview he stated that “he loves the classical guitar, as opposed to an electric or acoustic steel-string, it is the most sophisticated.”



As Marcin entered the studio to take his place on the stage and fine-tune his guitar to the piano, I noticed he had a support for this guitar attached to the bottom of it. He was the only guitarist I saw that had this type of device which puts the guitar in the proper playing position of classical guitar. The other guitarists used a small, folding foot support to raise their left leg on which the guitar would then rest, putting the guitar in the proper playing position.



The competition included a guitar concerto, a musical piece performed with a guitar and accompaniment (piano) and a musical piece performed solo (artist’s choice).



Marcin first played the "Concerto for Guitar and Small Orchestra" by Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos with Roland E. Martin as his piano accompanist.



Then, his solo encore or "free choice" piece was "Variations on a Theme by Sor, Opus 15" by Spanish composer Miguel Llobet. "Sor" refers to Spanish composer Fernando Sor.



During Marcin’s performance, he appeared to be very focused but relaxed and enjoying the music. Very much “in-the-moment” and seemed to be one-with-the-guitar. His performance included a wide range of techniques including: soft passages, 1/16 note runs, beautiful bell like harmonics and flamenco style flourishes.



Although it has been 12 years since Marcin Dylla had competed and won the first JoAnn Falletta competition, I clearly saw his influence in Marcin Kuzniar’s performance.



This year’s competition was not to be his. The distinguished panel of judges chose Chad Ibion from the USA, Ekachai Jearakul from Thailand and Marko Topchii from Ukraine as the three finalists to compete at Kleinhans Music Hall with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.



On Saturday evening, Marko Topchii from Ukraine went on to win the overall competition for 2014.



