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The Story of Music City Nashville, Tennessee
Volume 19, No. 9, Section A
F
FREE
September 2019
rom its very beginnings, Nashville grew from a foundation built on music. Music has been the common thread connecting the life and soul of the city and its people. And visitors have ventured here to experience the music that weaves such a fundamental pattern in its cultural, business, and social fabric.
The Beginning
Nashville’s earliest settlers celebrated in the late 1700s with fiddle tunes and buck dancing after safely disembarking on the shores of the Cumberland River. Nashville’s first “celebrity,” the noted frontiersman and Congressman Davy Crockett, was known far and wide for his colorful stories and fiddle playing.
where it stayed until 1974. Country Music Hall of Fame stars Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, George Jones, Dolly Parton, Charley Pride, and Elvis all performed at the Opry on the Ryman stage for the first time. In 1925, the establishment of radio station WSM and its launch of the broadcast that would be called the Grand Ole Opry further secured Nashville’s reputation as a musical center and sparked its durable nickname of Music City. The Opry, still staged live every week, is America’s longest-running radio show, in continuous production for more than 90 years. It ignited the careers of hundreds of country stars and lit the fuse for Nashville to explode into a geographic center for touring and recording. The modern-day empire of Music Row, a collection of recording studios, record labels, entertainment offices, and other music-associated businesses, populates the area around 16th and 17th Avenues South. In December 1945, when Bill Monroe played his mandolin at the Ryman with Lester Flatt playing guitar, Chubby Wise on fiddle, and Howard Watts on bass, a new musical genre of bluegrass music was created on the famous stage. Banjo player Earl Scruggs later joined the group. Today the Ryman celebrates 125 years as one of the most famous concert venues in America where stars who normally play arenas and even stadiums perform in the 2,362-seat venue. The long list of famous Ryman performers includes Bruce Springsteen, Garth Brooks, Paul Simon, The Foo Fighters, Aretha Franklin, Jack White, James Brown, Neil
Grand Ole Opry
Photo courtesy of countrymusichalloffame.org
Historic Venues
The most famous music venue in Nashville, the Ryman Auditorium, was built in 1892 when riverboat captain Tom Ryman completed what was originally named the ”Union Gospel Tabernacle.” When it opened, it was the largest auditorium south of the Ohio River. It is nicknamed the “Carnegie Hall of the South” and attracts musicians and fans from all across the world. The Ryman has received Pollstar magazine’s prestigious “Theater of the Year” award seven times in the past 10 years as the best auditorium in the nation to experience live music. The Fisk Jubilee Singers were one of the first musical concerts in the building, which was renamed in honor of Captain Ryman after his death in 1904. The Ryman was managed by Lula Naff from 1904-1955, and she booked the top musical acts of the era in the building, including Marian Anderson, Caruso, Sandra Bernhardt, Louis Armstrong, John Philip Sousa, and Nat King Cole. In 1943, it was Lula Naff who brought the Grand Ole Opry (which started in 1925) into the Ryman every weekend
Photo courtesy of opry.com
The Name of Music City
As the 1800s unfolded, Nashville grew to become a national center for music publishing. The first around-the-world tour by a musical act was by the Fisk Jubilee Singers from Nashville’s Fisk University. Their efforts helped fund the school’s mission of educating freed slaves after the Civil War – and also put Nashville on the map as a global music center. In fact, upon playing for the Queen of England, the queen stated the Fisk Jubilee Singers must come from the “Music City.”
Country Music Hall of Fame
Diamond, and Diana Ross. The Ryman is also open for daily tours where visitors can stand on its famous stage, watch a film of the history of the building, view clothes of Opry performers, and see Ryman memorabilia.
How the Legacy Continues
Nashville has also long been known as the “Songwriting Capital of the World.” Songwriters from all across the globe come to Music City to learn the art and share their passion of songwriting. The famous Bluebird Cafe showcases songwriters performing their original music in an intimate “in the round” setting that was created in Nashville and allows them to share the stories of inspiration behind their songs. Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), which fosters the art of songwriting and works to protect artists’
rights, is headquartered here. The annual Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival puts these songwriters somewhere they’re not use to being: In the spotlight. During the course of five days, more than 300 songwriters perform at venues around town. In recent years, cable television has broadcast Music City’s stars and music to the world. CMT and GAC have taken country music to a new level of acclaim and recognition. The gospel music series hosted by Nashville’s Bobby Jones on Black Entertainment Television was cable’s longest-running program. Bobby Jones Gospel came to an end in 2017 after 37 successful years. Nashville has also become a hub for pop, rock, bluegrass, Americana, jazz, classical, contemporary Christian, blues, and soul continued on page 2A ...
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