Music Institutions and Venues
The region of Myrtle Beach has been home to the well-known Carolina Opry, a country music-based variety show, established in 1986 by singer, producer and entrepreneur, Calvin Gilmore, South Carolina's official country music ambassador, who continues to produce and perform in the show today. The Carolina Opry was the first live family entertainment venue on the Grand Strand and helped turn Myrtle Beach into one of the major centers for country music on the East Coast. Local venues include the Dixie Stampede, one of many attractions owned by Dolly Parton, the Alabama Theater, named for the band Alabama, and the Palace Theatre. Other artists tried their hand with their own theaters which did not last, such as Ronnie Milsap with the Ronnie Milsap Theater, and the Gatlin Brothers with the Gatlin Brothers Theater. Both of these venues now house churches. Myrtle Beach is also home to the South Carolina State Bluegrass Festival.
Outside of Myrtle Beach, the town of West Columbia is notable as the home of Bill Wells of the Blue Ridge Mountain Grass; he is the owner of a local music shop, next to which is held a weekly bluegrass show called at the Pickin' Parlor.
Lesser known venues include Ground Zero in Spartanburg, New Brookland Tavern in West Columbia, Headliner's Music Hall in downtown Columbia, House of Blues in North Myrtle Beach, The Plex in North Charleston, the Music Farm in the downtown area of Charleston, and the former venue The Studio in Ladson.
Read more about this topic: Music Of South Carolina
Famous quotes containing the words music and/or institutions:
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—Anna Julia Cooper (1859–1964)
“Schools are generally feminine places, institutions where conformity is valued, taught largely by conformist women.”
—Judith M. Bardwick (b. 1933)