Humphries earns second third place finish in national dulcimer competition

Oct. 2, 2006

Presbyterian College student Stephen Humphries earned his second third place finish in a national hammered dulcimer competition this fall, an honor that also has focused additional attention on an emerging musical career.

Humphries, a junior from Chapin, S.C., traveled to Winfield, Kan., last month to compete at the Walnut Valley Festival, the largest bluegrass event in the country and the sight last year's third place finish.

The son of Alva and Debbie Humphries of Chapin, he said this year's event clearly was a different experience.

"I went into a little more confident because I knew how everything works (in the competition)," he said. "But I was also a little more nervous because I had expectations of myself this time."

After the first round – where he played "Nocturne" by Frederic Chopin and Rich Mullen's "78 Eatonwood Green" – Humphries reached the finals, where the field was narrowed to five players. In the second round, he played two original pieces – "Summer's Mood" and the title track of his first cd, "By the Pond."

"During the first round, I was a little nervous but in the second round, I just went out and enjoyed it," he said.

Placing third in another competition last spring, Humphries maintains a healthy perspective on being noticed at all by larger audiences.

"It's a good place to be," he said. "I'm definitely thankful to be there."

He also hopes he'll get another chance to compete in next year's Walnut Valley Festival.

"I can see myself doing it again," he said. "Having played there last year, I had a lot of good crowd support. It was really encouraging and nice to see."

In addition to "On the Pond," Humphries also has released "Humphries and Landrum" with dulcimer player Dan Landrum.

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