Watch 2019's astonishing Young Guitarist of the Year finalists in action

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By ( Guitarist, Guitar Techniques, Total Guitar ) published

See the final performances from our fantastic final three

(Image credit: Olly Curtis / Future)

The live final of 2019's Young Guitarist of the Year, in association with Ernie Ball, took place at the London Business Design Centre on 21 September, as part of the wider UK Guitar Show and World Guitar Day Celebrations. Now we can unveil footage of all the final performances.

The three finalists were hand-picked by a celebrity panel that included Nita Strauss, Plini and Rabea Massaad. Their three selections - Joey Bissell, Liam Garcia and Yamato Mori - were then invited to our live final.

On the day, our live panel of judges, which consisted of editors from Total Guitar, GuitarWorld.com and Guitarist, plus Brazilian guitar sensation Lari Basilio selected Japanese finalist Yamato Mori as the 2019 Young Guitarist of the Year, following a mind-blowing performance of his own song Eureka. 

Yamato wins a Sterling by Music Man Majesty guitar and a pile of goodies, including Ernie Ball Expression Overdrive and Ambient Delay pedals, a capo, a 10ft cable, a 25ft cable, a pack of patch cables, a black poly pro strap, an Ernie Ball toolkit, guitar polish and cloth, a Flextune clip-on tuner, a Powerpeg winder, a Pick Buddy pick holder and 12 sets of strings - all courtesy of sponsor Ernie Ball.

You can check out Yamato's winning performance, plus some remarkable playing from fellow finalists Liam Garcia and Joey Bissell below.

Young Guitarist of the Year 2019 winner: Yamato Mori, Japan

Young Guitarist of the Year 2019 finalist: Joey Bissell, UK

Young Guitarist of the Year 2019 finalist: Liam Garcia, USA

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Matt Parker
Matt Parker

Matt is a freelance journalist who has spent the last decade interviewing musicians for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.

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