Curator Talk: Music-Related Artifacts of the Tennessee State Museum

Date: Thursday, February 21, 2019

Time: 6:30 p.m. 

Location: Birthplace of Country Music Museum

FREE EVENT, but attendees are encouraged to RSVP due to limited seating.

CLICK TO RSVP

Tennessee State Museum curator Rob DeHart will stop by the Birthplace of Country Music Museum to highlight some of the outstanding artifacts related to Tennessee’s diverse musical heritage. From 19th century parlor music to bluegrass and blues, hear the stories that these objects have to tell.

This event is companion programming to our new special exhibit I Have a Voice: Tennessee’s African American Musical Heritage, on loan from the Tennessee State Museum and on display at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum from February 14 to April 30, 2019. Attendees will get the chance to explore the exhibit before and after Rob’s talk. I Have a Voice gives a snapshot of African American Tennesseans’ important contribution to American music, including spirituals, blues, ragtime, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and soul music. In turn, their music has influenced and enriched music around the world. From the early blues legends of W. C. Handy and Bessie Smith to the soul hits of STAX Records in Memphis, visitors can learn about various performers, getting the chance to hear the voices and the stories of many of the African American musicians from Tennessee who made their mark on American music and beyond.

This program is free and open to the public; due to limited seating, please reserve your spot online.

Rob DeHart is a curator at the Tennessee State Museum, where he focuses on cultural history and science and technology with a special emphasis on the Antebellum South. A graduate of the public history master’s program at Middle Tennessee State University, he worked in collections and programming at various small history museums before arriving at the State Museum in 2010. His exhibitions have won regional and national awards, and he currently serves as a peer reviewer for the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Rob’s musical background includes playing double-bass as an extra with the Nashville Symphony and playing guitar with a swing band on Printer’s Alley.

Special thanks to Wells Fargo for their support of this exhibit and its related programming.