Birthplace of Country Music
Bristol, Tennessee/Virginia
The Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee, has been making headlines in the music museum world for years. But on the far eastern edges of the state, in the town of Bristol, which straddles the border with Virginia, the new Birthplace of Country Music museum gives groups a fresh look at the origins of this wildly popular musical style.
Opened last August, the museum tells the story of Ralph Peer, who set up a makeshift recording studio in an old factory in Bristol 88 years ago, never thinking his music sessions would become legendary. The Bristol Sessions created the first recordings of the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers.
“This is not a museum reliant on artifacts to tell the story of Bristol’s important place in music history,” said Jessica Turner, director of the museum. “It’s a place where the music comes alive with exciting film and sound experiences and interactive touch-screen displays. It’s engaging for adults of all ages.”
An affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the museum reveals with music recordings how the sound of country music evolved from its earliest forms to the time of the Bristol recordings and beyond. Stories from the recordings of some of the people who participated in the Bristol Sessions give first-person accounts of now-famous events.
Highlights include a reproduced train depot, historic instruments and a re-created small chapel that enlightens guests on the importance of gospel music.
— www.birthplaceofcountrymusic.org —
EMP Museum
Seattle
Opened in 2000 under the name Experience Music Project, today the EMP Museum is the nation’s largest institution dedicated to the preservation of contemporary pop culture.
The museum was opened by avid music fans, who commissioned famed architect Frank Gehry to design the 140,000-square-foot facility. The building features fluid, futuristic designs inspired by the body of an electric guitar.
There’s still a lot of music to explore at the museum, including large exhibitions on Jimi Hendrix. and other music icons. Interactive galleries such as Sound Lab and On Stage allow visitors to explore the tools of rock ’n’ roll, try their hand at popular rock instruments and even perform in front of a virtual audience. And traditional exhibits showcase one of the world’s largest collections of rare rock memorabilia, including handwritten lyrics, personal instruments and original photographs celebrating Hendrix and Seattle music leaders Nirvana.
Visitors will also marvel at “If VI Was IX,” a towering guitar sculpture made up of more than 500 musical instruments and 30 computers.
In addition to the music theme, EMP also highlights pop art themes such as fantasy, horror cinema and science fiction.”
