You only have to walk down Broadway Avenue to know why they call it the city of music. Go from bar to bar to meet the battalion of good musicians and singers who make the walls resonate between sips of beers and whiskey.
Entrance is free. The artists hardly ask for any tips. Some act for the love of art, others dream of being discovered by a producer, as happened to Roy Orbison, Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton and many more before they became famous.
As they say in Nashville, commented guitarist Ted Sutton, while playing his rock guitar in Tootsies, this life aint for everybody.
Tootsies is the bar where Willie Nelson started cleaning floors. This time Sutton accompanies the singer Anthony Michael, who does C with the female voice of Lexxy Jade, marked by clear and precise tones, to demonstrate that country, in addition to cowboyshas cowgirls.
On the second floor of Tootsies, the young trio Pramuk, who traveled from New Hampshire to Nashville, summons the validity of the folk sound with three guitars and three voices.
Here we are. We are doing a tour of several cities, declared Pramuk Mohanlal Vargas, originally from Paraguay.
We compose, sing and play guitar from the heart, he concluded.
A few steps from Tootsies, Cliff Waddell and his group revive country music at Laylas, another bar that smells of whiskey and beer and where countless luminaries have passed through.
A couple of doors from Laylas, at Lucky Bastard Saloon, Dan Burnell Band exalts the public with a dose of good rock that mixes with sounds of country, blues and soul.
And music is the soul of Nashville. In it, Scots-Irish popular music from the eastern mountains was mixed with the rhythms of African-American blues; Thus was born the modern country music that made this city famous.
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Two streets down and we reach Printers Alley, where the night stars a burlesque show at Skulls and there are 10 more bars where you can listen to good country, rock and blues music.
But the most famous place of all is The Ryman Auditorium, which was originally an evangelical tabernacle when it opened its doors in 1892 and later the home of the famous Grand Ole Opry radio show.
Named a National Historic Landmark for its fundamental role in the popularization of music, The Ryman has witnessed the performance of countless great singers and musicians such as Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Ringo Starr and Robert Plant.
Grand Ole Opry
The famed radio program began as National Barn Dance in 1925 in a small studio in Nashville to broadcast popular, classical music and opera arias.
Followed by Hay’s Barn Dance, host George Hay renamed the radio segment The Grand Ole Opry in 1927 to give prominence to country music.
Today the radio show takes place every Saturday at the Grand Ole Opry auditorium, located on the outskirts of Nashville, and although it was originally dedicated to country music, today it is the setting for all musical events.
Other days of the week, from Tuesday to Sunday, the large 4,000-seat auditorium hosts musicians and singers of various manifestations, from pop and rock to soul, blues and even Latin, although country music continues to be the darling.
Background
For country fans and celebrity hopefuls, a trip to Nashville remains the ultimate pilgrimage.
Since the 1920s, the city has attracted musicians who have evolved this style of music, from the traditional sound of the early 20th century to the current troubadours, through the exquisite Nashville sound of the 1960s and the forceful alternative country with punk resonances. from the 1990s.
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In addition to the honky-tonk bars on Broadway and Printer Alley, and more on Music Row, as well as the revered Grand Ole Opry, The Ryman Auditorium has an attractive nightly concert schedule.
Another site of interest is the Country Music Hall of Fame, where in addition to history there are live presentations and lectures.
As part of the history of music, the National Museum of African American Music shows how the roots of African music influenced the creation of soul, blues and gospel.
But in Nashville there is more to see: a replica of the Parthenon in Centennial Park, which gives us an idea of what the Greek masterpiece in Athens was like, with an immense statue of the goddess Athena, 42 feet high (12.80 meters). , which presides over the large indoor hall.
We cannot forget gastronomy, but that section requires another article to be written soon.
Outside the city lie ancient plantations, battlefields and forts that continue to attract those interested in the American Civil War and history.
How to get there
Nashville has a convenient and modern airport that is located 20 minutes from the city.
Very well supplied with restaurants and shops, the BNA has direct flights to Miami and other cities in the United States and Canada, as well as London in England.
Where to stay
The accommodation offering is wide, from five-star hotels such as the JW Marriot, which is located 100 meters from Broadway Avenue, and the four-star Kimpton Aertson Hotel, on Music Row, to hostels and Airbnb apartments that you can rent.
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