blue ridge music center

NJTravellingfool

A short distance north of Asheville, you will come upon the Blue Ridge Music center dedicated to mountain music and musicians. During the summer months, you may be lucky enough to be there when there is a local band playing. You can sit in the rocker and listen or get up and dance. Inside the center itself, you can look at the well-designed exhibit about the instrument and musicians of the Appalachians. The exhibits are composed concentrate on the last 150 years or so but highlight the local talent that brought music to the region.

682JulieT

This is a great experience. From June to October locals gather in the afternoon during the week to jam together. The musicians come and go as they all play their own versions of the local folk music. Sitting a circle they take turns to play their songs. There are violins, banjos, guitars. And this all Free. At other times on the weekend there are concerts in an amphitheatre. Also a shop to buy the music and other local items. A lovely break from the Blueridge Parkway.

abcman33

We very much enjoyed the music and the park very well kept also employees were of great help the music center was great

Usiltons

This is a great place to visit in fact we came back several times to listen to the local jam sessions and to visit the center. We received a lot of information and the people are very friendly and of course the music was great.

chaimlit

Really interesting displays and videos of how the music came to be and influenced other music. Well done. Best part of the day was listening to the many local musicians who played in the small amphitheater. Very informal setting. Worth the visit!!

BillA790

interesting exhibits and displays of the musical instruments and history of the area. This is the birthplace of the first truly american music. Lots of displays with video and sound so you can see and hear the roots of this great music.

GRITS1946

We enjoyed hearing the music group play the original music from the mountains. Lots of information in the center about the origins and famous artists. Staff was very helpful and informative.

chazzq

Nice little museum, but most importantly the music. In the summer, a jam session every afternoon, and night time concerts with decent regional bands in a nice outdoor setting for ten bucks.

TUFish

The Blue Ridge Music Center is located just above the Virginia-North Carolina border on the Parkway. While driving, we noticed a small sign for the center, decided to pull over, and we're blown away by the complete facility. Big Saturday night concerts every weekend through the summer, but equally impressive is the group of local musicians playing in the facility. The musicianship was very high, and what was more interesting, was the group of musicians sitting in with the regulars, two very fine Canadian fiddlers, and a banjo player from Australia. We really enjoyed the music and the musical exchange as the players talked about different ways to play the same tune. The visitor center exhibits were equally enlightening. This is very much worth a visit and a listen.

Hollowell

It's places like this that make America such a great place to visit. Driving off the Blue Ridge Parkway into the Music Centre we were greeted by the sound of live music. We looked around the excellent museum and chatted to a well informed guide and then we sat down and dropped out of the real world for an hour. The Buck Mountain Band were playing and chatting and all six of them (that includes the dog) were brilliant. I now know the difference between Blue Grass and Old Time Appalachian music and much else of interest for a woman from an English village! I also have a greater empathy for the double bass player who is clearly an unsung heroine. Such amazing event and absolutely free of charge; thank you.

DianaC139

On a recent week-long vacation just five miles down the road, this was my first visit to the Music Center. I was there during the week and missed out on the Saturday night concert but my parents enjoy going regularly with a picnic dinner on the lawn at the ampitheatre. The Center itself is lovely, well-designed and very informative. We also spent a bit of time listening to the free jam session held by the various rotating musicians. I liked it so much that I returned two days later with my husband in tow and we spent much more time exploring the museum, watching the videos, and listening to the music samples. Great choice for an afternoon well spent!

USATravelDC

We stopped at the Blue Ridge Music Center as art of a 1200 mile, 3 day road trip. It was a beautiful new facility with a wonderful exhibit about the origins and history of southern music. There was a small group playing mountain music and the ranger was very helpful. His name was Casey.I STRONGLY suggest better signage. I suggested that they should have more prominent signs and they said the rules of the Blue Ridge Parkway mountains do not allow them to add signs. I was, however, talking about the kind of signs that are approved and are in other places in the park denoting various things.

329margaretf

This is a must for mountain music aficionados. Located outside of Galax, Virginia, on the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway, plan to spend some time browsing in the well done Mountain Music Museum. It includes the history of mountain music, instruments, and influential people of past and present in this genre of music. The display is interactive in some parts, has some great videos, and a great explanation of the evolution of this type of music. All of it is housed in a beautiful building and well cared for grounds. There is even an amphitheater. Some days of the week there is live music demonstrations and music jams for the public. The National Park Service representatives were friendly and knowledgable.

davideD7373GX

Great break from driving the ridge road at 35 MPH We enjoyed live music and the local musicians playingworld class instruments that were made within 50 miles of the center.

Lulugm

Live music was playing when we were there and the performers growing by the minute. Very nice display of origins of music in the area. Right off the Blue Ridge Parkway.