BREAKING DOWN THE SCALE Music City Center Between Fifth and Eighth Avenues Tuck-Hinton Architects Moody-Nolan Architects Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates This megalithic embrace is “all for y’all.” There is no better way, or dare I say bigger way, to say “Howdee!” The massive, undulating structure adjacent to the new Omni Hotel, the soul-stirring Country Music Hall of Fame and Lower Broadway’s honky-tonk row gives visitors fingertip access to all things Music City. With stunning views of the city skyline out front, the backstory here is the symbolic representation of our very identity as a state and a city that was purposely designed into the building, starting with the four-acre green roof. “We undulated the roof to represent the hills of Tennessee so when your eye follows the roof, it gives the building a sense of movement,” reveals Seab Tuck, principal, Tuck-Hinton Architects. “The whole underside of the roof is warm woods. The columns and cables are symbolic of the strings in a fiddle or violin. The outside roof is made up of five different metals.Thinking again about musical instruments, the patterns inside the building are slits and boxes. Then there are vertical patterns all over the building, like a player piano roll, and so it starts to give a rhythm to the structure like music notes. Ultimately it is about music and the hills.” With bookings that already extend into 2026, the center offers 2.1 million-square-feet of Tennessee and a resounding, “Y’all come back now, ya hear!” My guess is whether you are in Nashville for a convention or for vacation, the Music City Center will become the new destination station. Music City Beat: Sheryl Crowe and Brad Paisley have performed here.
Bob Schatz
Aerial Innovations of Tennessee
gargoyle-laden churches scattered throughout downtown, revealing an Egyptian motif. Perhaps our greatest symbolic identity is built into the iconic Country Music Hall of Fame on Fifth Avenue. Designed by Tuck-Hinton Architects, from its piano key windows to the radio mast tower, our musical roots sing loudly. Contextual symbology underpins the Bicentennial Mall State Park, also designed by Tuck-Hinton, a firm which—more than any other vision builder in Nashville—writes stories in stone the old fashioned way: through symbols that convey multi-layered meaning. One of Nashville’s proudest moments as a city which helped define its identity surely has to be the redesigned Nashville Public Library on Church Street. New York-based Robert A.M. Stern Architects continued Nashville’s strong classical profile with its limestone exterior walls, Ionic columns and motif-laden bronze doors created by local artist Alan LeQuire (creator of the Parthenon’s Athena). When showing Nashville’s downtown skyline, cameras always pan to one of our betterknown profiles and the tallest building in the state: the 33-story skyscraper “Bat building”— actually the AT&T Building, designed by Ron Lusig, principal design architect of Earl Swensson Associates. What does Nashville’s architectural story say about us as a people, as a city? From our hardy pioneer days we are a force with which to be reckoned. We embrace and admire a more classical approach to our education and art forms, yet we are not afraid of our diversity and often produce “signature” pieces because we embolden a creative spirit—without getting too far from our country roots and traditions. And when it comes to the future, we think big. Real big. Just look at the newest chapter in the skyline, the Music City Center. Whether you are a first time visitor to the city or a local, take time to explore or reconnect to Nashville’s architecture as a way to get to know more about who we are, from our roots to our future aspirations, with a few more recommendations below. Truly the best way to understand our great Southern city and the story we continue to write about ourselves is to go experience the space.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Nashville Public Square Third Ave. North and Union St. Tuck-Hinton Architects In 2003, under then-Mayor Bill Purcell’s direction, the city began converting more than seven acres of parking space in front of the 1930s art deco Metro Courthouse (listed on the National Register of Historical Places) from dull gray asphalt to usable green space, in a breathtaking work of art titled “Nashville Public Square.” Interestingly, the first known photo taken of our blooming city is an image of the public square taken in 1855, which is now preserved at the Tennessee State Museum. Fast forward to a multi-million dollar renovation finished in 2006 and the architects at Tuck-Hinton Architects, working with other landscape architects, have preserved Nashville’s history—appropriately, right on the corner where it all began. The not-tomiss element here is the pavilion panels that highlight Nashville’s history. The pavilion is connected to the park and the underground parking garage (that makes great use of natural light) by a pair of towers representing Nashville’s founders, James Robertson and John Donelson. “You’ll see maps that show how Nashville changed every 50 years. It is a wonderful place to catch up on history,” says Seab Tuck, principal. Tuck-Hinton Architects. Best place in the city to connect to our roots, enjoy the sunshine, urban neighbors, and soak up Nashville’s vibe. Music City Beat: Faith Hill and Tim McGraw cochaired the 200th birthday celebration and opening ceremony in 2006.
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