Rissi Palmer by Jimmy Bruch.jpg
Rissi Palmer plays the Music Center on July 23. Photo by Jimmy Bruch. This summer, the Blue Ridge Music Center is celebrating 20 year of hosting concerts in the hillside amphitheater at milepost 213 on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Galax, Virginia.
Taking the stage are fan favorites, including North Carolina-based acts such as the Steep Canyon Rangers, Kruger Brothers accompanied by Kontras Quartet, and Chatham County Line, and Virginia-based acts The Steel Wheels, Dori Freeman accompanied by a Winston-Salem Symphony String Quintet, and Bill and the Belles.
The roster is strong on bluegrass and old-time music, featuring traditional acts as well as artists that perform in a more contemporary vein. Representing the music of the Blue Ridge Mountains are Unspoken Tradition, Five Mile Mountain Road, Nobody’s Business, None of the Above, The Mike Mitchell Band, Zoe & Cloyd, and ShadowGrass.
Feature performers who represent diversity and inclusion in the American roots music community include Rissi Palmer (Color Me Country Radio), Joe Troop & Friends, Earl White Stringband, Tuba Skinny, and several female-fronted bands such as Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, The Amanda Cook Band, The Burnett Sisters Band, Dori Freeman, and Molly Tuttle.
The concerts are hosted at 7 p.m., Saturday evenings. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for season passholders, and at 5:45 p.m. for ticket holders.
- May 28: Tuba Skinny
- June 4: Symphony Unbound with Dori Freeman accompanied by Winston-Salem Symphony String Quintet
- June 18: Kruger Brothers accompanied by Kontras Quartet
- June 25: Zoe & Cloyd + The Burnett Sisters Band with Colin Ray
- July 2: Old Time Dance Party with Five Mile Mountain Road + Earl White Stringband
- July 9: Mike Mitchell Band + None of the Above
- July 16: Bill and the Belles + ShadowGrass
- July 23: Rissi Palmer + Joe Troop & Friends
- July 30: The Amanda Cook Band + Unspoken Tradition
- August 6: An Evening with the Steep Canyon Rangers
- August 20: The Slocan Ramblers + Nobody's Business
- August 27: The Steel Wheels + Chatham County Line
- September 3: Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway + Wayne Henderson & Herb Key
Tickets, season passes and memberships are on sale now. Children 12 and younger are admitted for free unless otherwise noted.
Since 2013, donors to the Foundation have supported musical programming at the Music Center.