Scott Fore

Flat-picked guitar

Saturday: Guitar Traditions at 1 p.m. Penobscot; Sunday: 1 p.m. at Two Rivers with David Doucet

Scott Fore is in regular attendance at the National Folk Festival – but he’s usually invisible. That’s because he’s an audio engineer, working behind the scenes to make those in the limelight sound good.

But this year, Scott is stepping out onto the stage, giving festival-goers an opportunity to experience his formidable skills as a guitarist. Scott has numerous titles to his credit, including winning the 2002 National Flatpicking Championship in Winfield, Kan., the 2002 Doc Watson Guitar Championship and the 2002 Old Galax Fiddler’s Convention Guitar Contest, where he also garnered the Best All Around Performer award. This summer, he won the 2004 All-Star Competition at the Wayne C. Henderson Festival, a contest in which the winners from each of the previous 10 years vied for this rare title.

He has conducted guitar workshops across the United States, published a book containing transcriptions of 12 of his contest-winning arrangements and recently released his first compact disc, titled “Contest Winners.”