This year marks the 50th anniversary of Blossom Music Center, the summer home of the Cleveland Orchestra and a popular destination for touring bands of all musical genres (acts ranging from rapper Wiz Khalifa to metal masters Slayer have recently performed at the facility).
A new Ideastream production, Blossom Music Center – 50 Years and Counting, commemorates the venue's history and revisits some of the biggest rock and pop concerts that have taken place at the venue.
Set to air next month, the documentary program revisits the place’s history and explores Blossom's origins when the local architecture firm Shafer, Flynn and Van Dijk was chosen to oversee its design.
Blossom Music Center – 50 Years and Counting also includes interviews with many of the more popular acts that have played Blossom. During an interview backstage at his recent concert there, Jimmy Buffett recalls the organized conga line that happened during his hit song, “Volcano.”
“The ushers were not ready for the Parrot Heads, I don’t think. They couldn’t quite figure out when people started getting up, and this line started snaking through.”
The documentary also includes interviews with Cleveland Orchestra members. They naturally sing its praises.
“It’s really one of the envies of visiting artists when they come to Blossom,” says orchestra bassist Martin Flowerman. “They rave over it.”
“Blossom Music Center is the thread that connects Northeast Ohio’s rich musical legacy, from the Cleveland Orchestra to Chance the Rapper,” says ideastream President and CEO Kevin Martin in a press release about the program. “So many memories have been made at Blossom, and this production tells the story of how this venue has become an anchor of our community’s cultural heritage.”
The program airs at 8 and 10:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 24, on WVIZ/PBS Ideastream. The production will also be available to watch online in its entirety at ideastream.org/blossom50 beginning that same day. In addition to the full-length program, the web page will feature exclusive bonus content such as fan videos and an interactive timeline.
