American music is tragically underrepresented in museum facilities. Here are fourteen museums you can (and should) go visit.
Autry National Center
Los Angeles, Calif.
Although not strictly dedicated to music, The Autry National Center is dedicated to exploring and sharing the stories and experiences of the people of the American West.
With more than 500,000 artifacts, it is one of the most significant collections of western memorabilia in the United States.
On the third Sunday of every month, the Western Music Association Monthly Jam features musicians and cowboy poets who perform the songs of the Old West.
www.theautry.org
Country Music Hall of Fame
Nashville, Tenn
Operated by the Country Music Foundation, the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is dedicated to preserving the history of country music and related music rooted in southern culture.
The facility features a variety of dynamic, state-of-the-art exhibits featuring historic country video clips and recorded music. The museum’s public space is home to an ongoing line up of live performances and public programs.
www.countrymusichalloffame.org
Delta Blues Museum
Clarksdale, Miss.
The City of Clarksdale, located at “the crossroads” of Highways 61 and 49, and the surrounding Delta region, are known as ”the land where the blues began.”
Located in the heart of Clarksdale, the Delta Blues Museum, one of the oldest museums in the United States—and the oldest in the state of Mississippi—is dedicated to preserving the history of the blues.
The Delta Blues Museum Stage hosts a year-round music education program and is home to several local festivals, including the Sunflower River Blues and Gospel Festival in August and the Juke Joint Festival in April.
www.deltabluesmuseum.org
Delta Music Museum & Arcade Theater
Ferriday, Louisiana
The sounds of Delta Blues are also preserved at the Delta Music Museum, located in Ferriday Louisiana.
The facility, housed in the city’s old Post Office building, tells the story of three cousins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Mickey Gilley, and Jimmy Swaggart, as well as other performers who have contributed to Southern music.
Next door, the recently restored Arcade Theater is home to ongoing music performances.
www.sos.la.gov/tabid/238/Default.aspx
The International Bluegrass Music Museum
Owensboro, Ky.
Established to preserve the history of the music form created by Bill Monroe, who wrote the state song “Blue Moon of Kentucky,” the International Bluegrass Music Museum is located just 30 minutes from where Monroe was born.
Coined bluegrass in the 1950s, the music form attributed to Monroe and his band, “The Blue Grass Boys,” which developed the music style based on a blend of styles, including Appalachian mountain music, rural “old time” string playing, folk ballads, blues, African stomp, and black and white gospel.
The International Bluegrass Music Museum is the world’s only facility dedicated to the history and preservation of the international history of bluegrass music.
www.bluegrass-museum.org
The National Jazz Museum in Harlem
New York, NY
Once the stomping grounds of such jazz greats as Duke Ellington, Benny Carter, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Count Basie, John Coltrane and Billie Holiday, Harlem has a storied history of nurturing some of the best jazz in the world. Today’s musicians continue to find Harlem a place to innovate contemporary jazz sounds.
The National Jazz Museum in Harlem presents a weekly roster of events—both live performances, as well as lectures—dedicated to preserving the art as well as fostering it for future generations.
www.jazzmuseuminharlem.org
New Orleans Jazz Museum
New Orleans, LA
www.nps.gov/jazz/index.htm
National Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame
Cleveland, Ohio
www.clevelandstyle.com
Rock ‘n Soul Museum
Memphis, Tenn.
www.memphisrocknsoul.org
The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music
Champaign, Ill
www.library.illinois.edu/sousa/
Southern Gospel Museum and Hall of Fame
Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
Set on the grounds of the Dollywood Theme Park, the Southern Gospel Museum and Hall of Fame honors the music that found much of its origins in the Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee.
The facility honor’s the pioneers of Southern Gospel music, with plaques honoring inductees, and music and video clips tracing the music form’s history.
www.dollywood.com/themepark/rides/Southern-Gospel-Museum-and-Hall-of-Fame.aspx
EMP
Seattle, Wash.
Grammy Museum
Los Angeles, Calif.
www.grammymuseum.org
Rock N Roll Hall of Fame
Cleveland, Ohio
Leave a Reply