The Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum has announced “Daviess County Day at the Museum,” an initiative that begins in September and aims to draw more county residents to the facility.
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The event is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each Wednesday beginning Sept. 7 and runs through the end of the year. On Wednesdays, residents of Daviess County are invited to enter the museum for free by presenting a valid Daviess County identification.
All exhibits and the Pickin’ Parlor will be open. Live bluegrass music will be played from noon to 1 p.m. on the Owensboro Health Lobby Stage.
Chris Joslin, executive director of the museum, said the idea has been in the works for about a year and stems from personal experiences and realizations.
“I came here from Nashville, and I would get so busy with the rhythm of my life that sometimes I didn’t really engage with things like the Grand Ole Opry or the great scene down on lower Broadway with all the music,” he said.
Joslin said his family members who live near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, also have a hard time “pressing the pause button” in life, as they rarely visit attractions like Dollywood that draw tourists from around the world.
“I started thinking about Owensboro, because we have people from all over the country and all over the world who make a B-line here and engage with our place every day that we’re open — and it’s so awesome,” Joslin said. “I just want to make it easier for local residents to see what all the hubbub was about and to make it easy and inviting ….”
Joslin points out the uniqueness of the facility being tied to this area’s history and cultural roots, along with its exploration of the history of bluegrass music and prominent figures, sources of the music from gospel, jazz and blues, and the festival era and contemporary and modern artists in both the genre and subgenres.
Joslin believes the opportunity will allow visitors to be engaged with the museum and its overall experience, including the recently-unveiled audio guide, which provides visitors a narrated experience through both floors of exhibits and provides an in-depth perspective in each area of the museum.
“We just wanted folks to feel like our doors are wide open and make it easy for them to come and discover what goes on here at the Hall of Fame,” he said.
Joslin said the program can also help Owensboro and Daviess County residents be ambassadors for the “Bluegrass Capital of the World” campaign, which can have an impact on economic development.
“…The hope is that as we live this out as the ‘Bluegrass Capital of the World,’ we can attract more industry and more people that are drawn here,” he said. “If you feel like bluegrass music is your thing …, this is where you come for that.”
