JTC JOTM Dec 20 Rules and Recap

2020 has been a challenge. Fires in Australia, floods in Indonesia, the passing of a guitar icon, and of course, Covid-19. But if you’re looking for a silver lining, the 2020 edition of JTC Jam of the Month is as good as they get.

Thousands of people, coming together under the banner of musical exploration and in the process creating a community that is vibrant, supportive and constantly growing.

But the time has come to crown a “champion” of that community and to find out who will win the fabled Ibanez AZ Prestige. So to explain how it’s all going to work, here’s a breakdown. But first...

A quick recap!

Since April, Ibanez have sponsored the JTC Jam of the Month, and have offered an AZ Prestige as a grand prize. So each month, we have given away a free backing, and each month our guest judge has chosen their favourite solo. Now, each monthly winner from April to November will battle it out to see who gets the guitar!

How will the final winner be chosen?

The winner will be selected through a combination of public vote and via our judging panel. For December, the guest judges are some of our most elite JTC pros and all Ibanez endorsees: Luca Mantovanelli, Nili Brosh, Brian Maillard, Ruben Wan and Igor Paspalj.

This is how the December final will work...

• Each of the eight winners between April and November will be given until December the 18th to submit their solo directly to the team at JTC Guitar.
• There are five backings to choose from, but they can only submit one solo. Once submitted this cannot be changed.
• JTC will then release each solo one by one into the JTC Jam of the Month group, on the 23rd of December. Contestants will be free to post their solo to their own social channels only after this point.
• Once all solos have been shared, we will open a poll within the group for people to vote on their favourite, between 24th and 29th December. The position in the poll denotes how many points that person gets. Example - Joe Blogs wins the public vote so gets 7 points. Joanna Blogs comes eight, they get 1 point.
• Each judge will be asked to put the solos in order with the same point system in place.
• The person with the most points wins an Ibanez AZ Prestige, and is crowned JTC Jam of the Month 2020 Champion!
• The winner will be announced in early January 2021.

Is there a monthly prize for non finalists?

The JTC community is a beautiful thing. It’s ever growing and passionate, and we wouldn't be here without it. So as a special thanks, for December we are also offering all non finalists the chance to win a six month Premium Membership to JTC Guitar. If you are already a member, we will simply extend your membership for free! The monthly winner will also get JTC x Ibanez Picks.

How will the monthly winner be chosen?

To keep things simple, we will ask the judges to directly pick the best solo for December, with a simple majority needed to crown the winner.

How do I enter the monthly contest?

• Download this month’s FREE pack featuring five highly jammable tracks.
• Film yourself jamming over it.
• Share your video on the JTC Jam of the Month Facebook Group.
• Or use #JTCJamOfTheMonth and tag @jtc_guitar on Instagram
• You can pick any backing you like, and enter with all them if you like! You can submit as many solos as you like too.
• The deadline for entries is midnight (GMT/BST) on the last day of the month.

Who are the finalists?

A huge thanks goes out to the judges who have given their time to make this what it is! Without them we wouldn’t have our finalists. Here’s the full line up, with links to their winning solo.

• April: Ryoya Yamaguchi as chosen by Nili Brosh
• May: Stephane Akrivos as chosen by Martin Miller
• June: Samuele Perduca as chosen by Lari Basilio
• July: Alberto Barsi as chosen by Marco Sfogli
• August: Oliver Christian as chosen by Jack Thammarat
• September: Edo Faiella as chosen by Justin Derrico
• October: Alex England as chosen by Tom Quayle
• November’s winner has been contacted and will be announced shortly at which point this will be updated

And finally...

A massive thanks to all those that have shared a solo, watched a solo, or just downloaded the freebies to help them practice. We are so grateful for your support and from everyone at JTC, thank you.