The National Blues Museum Opens April 2nd Monday March 28, 2016 Share AttractionsFamily-FriendlyMusic By Mark The highly anticipated Grand Opening of the National Blues Museum will take place April 2nd. The Museum features innovative, interactive and technological exhibits exploring and preserving the historic significance of the Blues as the foundation of American Music, acknowledging the various genres and the musicians who created, sustain and advance the art form. The 23,000-square foot facility will include multifunctional space for performances and events to accommodate anywhere from 15 to 450 guests. Granting visitors blues music education, programming and opportunities to create blues music in a mixing booth. Notable musicians that became legendary names in the entertainment industry are to be featured in the museum. The museum will cover the powerful role and influence of blues musicians and the blues genre as the foundation of American music. Sugarfire Smoke House is also housed in the National Blues Museum, culminating the flavors of barbeque perfectly with live music. The Grand Opening will kick off with the Normandy High School marching band will begin the outdoor festivities with a musical procession from the corner of Sixth and Washington Avenue at 9:30 a.m. After the procession, there will be remarks from the Chairman of the Board Rob Endicott, Executive Director Dion Brown, and Mayor Francis Slay. Following the ribbon cutting, the museum will officially at 10:00 a.m. Inside, there will be live entertainment until 4:00 p.m. Musicians featured throughout the day include: Blues rock band Phi, blues musicians David Dee, Jeremiah Johnson, Marquise Knox, Jim McClaren, Mickey Rogers, and Renee Smith. The first traveling exhibit at the National Blues Museum is the H.C. Porter’s “Blues @ Home: Mississippi’s Living Blues Legends” exhibition, which will be on view in the Scott and Diane McCuaig and Family Gallery. Porter created 31 paintings of Mississippi-based blues artists and has paired them with oral histories from each subject. The exhibition includes images of world-famous performers, including the late David “Honeyboy” Edwards, the late B.B. King, and Bobby Rush. For more information on all of the National Blues Museum's Grand Opening events, please visit https://nationalbluesmuseum.org/news/grand-opening-weeekend/ Share
