They did it – congratulations Galax!

Successful attempt to set the Guinness World Record for Largest Mandolin Ensemble at the Old Fiddler's Convention in Galax, VA (8/4/15) - photo by Perrie CokerWell done Old Fiddler’s Convention attendees in Galax, VA! This afternoon they once again set the Guinness World Record for Largest Mandolin Ensemble with 491 musicians.

At this point, the count is still unofficial but organizer Tara Linhardt tells us that they handily beat the existing record of 414 mandolinists. When she returns from Galax, she’ll get all the videos, photos, and witness forms together and off to the Guinness folks for certification and approval.

Tara said that a total of 493 players registered, but that crowd monitors noticed two people that stopped playing at one point, so they can’t be counted.

Hopefully, beating the previous number by this large a margin will keep the record here in the US for a good while.

Congratulations to Tara, all the other folks who helped organize and execute the attempt, and all 493 mandolinists who showed up to take part!

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About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2006 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.