All About the Music: Orlando Heads To Nashville – Orlando Magazine

I realized a bucket-list experience on my latest trip to Nashville. I had visited Music City a few times before, but this time, I was invited out by Geiger PR and Visit Music City, who curated a visit that picked off the highlights while also showcased some of the city’s best lesser-known gems.

When a dozen other journalists and I assembled one morning to discuss the day’s plan, I squealed with delight when I heard that the Fisk Jubilee Singers would be performing at the Grand Ole Opry that night. I had interviewed longtime musical director, Dr. Paul Kwami (who has since passed away), for a sister publication a few years ago, and was delighted to hear his stories of performing with the a cappella group himself and taking it to his native Ghana in 2007 for the nation’s Golden Jubilee. The pride with which Kwami spoke about the ensemble, his role in guiding them and his reverence for music, particularly Negro spirituals, made me want to see the singers in person more than ever before.

Now I was going to get that chance. At another icon of the music world, nonetheless, the Grand Ole Opry.

The first time I was fortunate enough to go to the Opry, I saw a bill of bluegrass music I thought wouldn’t really be my thing, until the luminaries came out to pay tribute to Del Coury—Marty Stuart, Vince Gill and Dierks Bentley among them. The place was electric, and it was contagious. It was the cherry atop a pilgrimage to this Nashville institution.

This time, my Opry experience was completely different—and completely awesome in a different way. We got to hang out in Opry’s VIP room and interact with some of the performers who were on the bill that night. We met patrons who were excited for the show and who were dressed to the nines. After intermission we found out why—it was Carin Leon’s first time to perform on the Opry stage.

And Leon rocked so hard, the Opry is probably still shaking in his aftermath. This country singer from Mexico stole the show, and the hearts of many of the young Latinas who I imagined were specifically listening to country music because of him. He was not uneasy on the eyes.

Leon was a hard act to follow, at least until the Fisk Jubilee Singers came out. It’s hard to imagine there was a dry eye in the house after they took the stage.

The Fisk Jubilee Singers, in fact, are the reason Nashville has the nickname “Music City.” In the 1870s, part of the group’s world tour included a performance for Queen Victoria, who is said to have remarked that the singers must have come from a “city of music.”

So, as I try to tell people who think Nashville is only about country music, it’s just a place for people who love music, period. There are so many ways to experience music in Nashville; here’s a crash course in how to go about it.

Historic Stages

In addition to the Grand Ole Opry, the other venue you shouldn’t miss is the Ryman Auditorium. First opened as the Union Gospel Tabernacle by Captain Tom Ryman, the “Mother Church of Country Music” is considered one of the most acoustically sound venues for music in the United States. It’s been around since 1892, and after a fallow period, was restored in the ‘90s by stars such as Emmylou Harris, who was instrumental in its conservation. Take a tour, after which you’ll have a chance to stand on its hallowed stage and come back for a concert later.

Ryman Auditorium, the “Mother Church of Country Music.” Photo courtesy of Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp.

Yes, honky tonks are all the rage nowadays, as stars such as Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Garth Brooks and even Jon Bon Jovi have their own honky tonks, but walk the Honky Tonk Highway closer to the Assembly Food Hall (so much great food here!) and you’ll find classic honky tonks such as Nudie’s (who created over-the-top costumes for himself, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and John Wayne, among many others), Robert’s Western World and Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge. Budding stars who cut their teeth on some of these stages include Willie Nelson, the late Kris Kristofferson, George Jones, Hank Williams, Darius Rucker and Toby Keith.

The National Museum of African American Music. Photo courtesy of Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp.

Just up from Honky Tonk Highway on Fifth & Broadway, lies one of the best interactive music museums in the country. At the National Museum of African American Music, you can headline a choir, produce a hit song, create your own signature beat and listen to artists’ catalogues at stations that abound throughout the museum. Use the wristband you receive upon entry to save playlists you create at these kiosks so you can play them repeatedly.

A little further away, but still within walking distance, the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum awaits. A wall of gold records welcomes you; then comprehensive galleries delve deep into the world of greats like Johnny, Blake, Patsy, Dolly, Faith and, of course, Taylor, via rhinestone-studded costumes, hand-written lyrics, priceless mementoes and performance videos. You could literally spend the whole day here, watching videos and reading up on your favorite singers or groups. If it wasn’t for a time restriction (to take the Hatch Show Print tour, described below), I may have spent the rest of the afternoon here, but the reality is that there’s so much to see, you may need half a dozen trips to take it all in.

A Side Tour: Hatch Show Print

Next door to the Country Music HOF is Hatch Show Print, famous for the colorful handbills that have been used to advertise everyone from Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, who appeared on its first piece of collateral, to Minnie Pearl, B.B. King, the Rolling Stones and the Jonas Brothers. When you take the behind-the-scenes tour, you get to create your very own handbill, which you roll yourself. It’s fun to see the many and varied prints, and it was one of my favorite takeaways from the trip.

A Classical Powerhouse

Just down the block from the Country Music HOF, The Schermerhorn is the home of the Nashville Symphony and a full breadth of events that showcase popular bands, movies, cultural celebrations, children’s programs and one-person shows. This well-crafted concert hall saw conductor Leonard Slatkin serve as its first music advisor (and won the orchestra three Grammys). The Schermerhorn is  one of the few halls nationwide to feature natural interior light through 30 special soundproof windows. Its custom-built concert organ contains 47 voices, 64 ranks and more than 3,500 pipes that create a lyrical, expressive timbre. But don’t take our word for it, visit yourself.

Tired yet? I feel like we’ve barely scratched the surface. Maybe it’s time for a meal and a drink? Let’s head to a listening room.

Robert’s Western World, one of Nashville’s classic honky tonks. Photos courtesy of Nashville Convention
& Visitors Corp.

Listening Rooms

Listening rooms saw a surge in popularity after the TV series “Nashville” prominently featured the Bluebird Café; that listening room still is one of the most coveted reservations in Nashville. But there are many more great such rooms in Nashville.

For those unfamiliar with the format, a listening room usually features 3-4 singer/songwriters with nothing more than a chair and a guitar. Some have written music’s most popular songs; others are just starting out. It’s a journey of discovery. Most usually have some kind of cover charge, in the form of dinner or a drink minimum. They’re casual and perfect for when you just want to come as you are. You may be able to find one in your hotel lounge, as I did on my first trip to Nashville, where I listened every single night. Others are (a bit) more structured, but our favorites are The Listening Room Café and any Puckett’s —you can also find Puckett’s in other markets, so be on the lookout when you travel.

The last night of the media tour ended with another triumph, a visit to Skull’s Rainbow Room, a venue I had always wanted to visit but could never get a reservation for, even when I stayed at a hotel across the street. The hot tickets here are the burlesque shows on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and the folks at Visit Music City made sure those of us who wanted to visit had the chance to do so. No stranger to topless shows thanks to my Vegas days, I was perfectly at home, and the mixed crowd showed just the right balance of appreciation and abandon. As the ladies shimmied down the stage and into the crowd in their gorgeous costumes, wearing less and less à la the “Dance of the Seven Veils,” they worked the standing-room crowd lined up against the wall into the show, their reward for not having a seat.

Live jazz is also on Skulls’ schedule nightly.

Capping off my Nashville experience was a visit to the Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar, and it held the greatest surprise of the trip. I was feeling pretty tired at this point, but the PR rep coaxed me in, under the recommendation that it was her favorite bar in town. Once inside, I was rapt in watching Stacy Mitchhart, a longtime Nashville singer’s, set. I thought it was a fitting end to my Nashville experience and rock out to a performance from a local who’s contributed so much to the city, reinforcing that Music City moniker (Mitchhart has been performing on Nashville’s stages for 20 years). We closed out the bar, and I still listen to Mitchhart on Spotify today.