The age old tradition of conch shell blowing is alive and well in Key West, Florida.

Nearly 30 participants took part in an annual competition to make music with the giant seashell that stretches back over 50 years.

Hundreds of spectators watched as conch blowers of all abilities took their shot at the crown.

Participants were judged on criteria such as loudness, duration and how novel a sound they could produce.

Corey Fritz wowed the crowd with what he said was an original composition, and he took home top prize in the men's category.

The event organizers say that the tradition of conch blowing goes back to the 1800s in Florida, when sailors who made their living salvaging shipwrecks used the shells to call out for attention.

The giant seashell is so ingrained in the local culture that Key West is known unofficially as the "Conch Republic".