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Guitarmageddon - Playing At A Guitar Center Near You!
Press Release
2004-03-23

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WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA, March 17, 2004 — Guitar Center, America’s leading musical instrument and professional audio retailer, began its four-month search to find the best unsigned guitarist with the opening of the massive Guitarmageddon competition. Now in its fifth year, Guitarmageddon calls upon the most talented guitarists in America to strut their stuff before a panel of judges who will choose a winner based on musicality in song context, technique, dynamics, stage presence and originality. The Grand Prize Winner will receive a 2004 Honda Element, a Gibson Custom Shop Guitar and a $2500.00 Guitar Center shopping spree! The event is open to anyone as long as they are not currently signed to a national distribution deal or endorsement and have not been a previous Regional and/or Grand Prize Winner in Guitarmageddon.

Guitarmageddon kicked off on March 16, with four weeks of in-store competitions beginning at Guitar Center’s 124 stores across the nation. The next in-store competitions are slated for March 23 and March 30, and the store finalists will be decided on April 6. Store winners will then compete in 14 District Finals on April 27, with those chosen as district champions going on to battle it out at three (East, Central and West) Regional Finals scheduled for May 10-14. Guitarmageddon culminates in the Grand Finals, which will be held at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival, on June 4-6 at Fair Park and Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas.

Guitarists compete by playing along with their choice of one of 18 original backing tracks created by Line 6, plus showing off with an additional 2-minute solo after the backing track performance is done. Contestants get to further tailor their signature guitar sound by choosing one of five different amplifiers, with options including models from Crate, Fender, Line 6, and Marshall, or running direct through a Bose Personal Amplification System. In addition to the 2004 Honda Element, Gibson Custom Shop Guitar and a $2500.00 Guitar Center shopping spree, the event has attracted other prominent sponsors and prize contributors. Featured Guitarmageddon bounty includes: headphones and personal amplification systems from Bose; Les Paul guitars, Goldtone 1/2 stack amplifiers and GIG accessory packs from Gibson; PODxt Pros, POD 2.0s and Guitar Port effects processors from Line 6; and 14-$250.00 Guitar Center shopping sprees courtesy of the Guitar Center Preferred Player Credit Card.

Commenting on the 2004 Guitarmageddon competition, Darren Feldman, director of direct marketing and promotions for Guitar Center, stated, “Each year we try to kick Guitarmageddon up a notch and this year is no exception. By working closely with our sponsors as well as holding the Grand Finals at the Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas, I truly believe that Guitarmageddon will continue to be viewed not only as the largest, but also as the preeminent guitarist competition in the nation. It’s just another way of Guitar Center giving something back to the music community.”