The stage is set, and the curtain is rising on Nashville, a city with a song in its heart, as the premier venue for the 2013 29th Audi Club North America Frank Beddor National.
For more than 200 years, music has shaped the history of Nashville. And even if toe-tapping, banjo playing, country crooning isn’t your cup of tea, the charm of this world-wide acclaimed hotspot will win you over. The experience will be like no other, one that touches members with heart and Southern hospitality.
Combining small-town warmth with an unexpected urban sophistication, Nashville is a friendly Southern city with lots to love. Downtown Nashville is a vibrant thriving area that is a blend of old and new. In downtown’s decades-old honky tonks, live country music and bluegrass play from dusk ‘til dawn. Just down the street from the legendary honky tonks where many of yesterday’s country singers and songwriters first plied their trade, you’ll also find newer attractions such as the Hard Rock Café.
So much to do, so little time
Art museums and galleries, antebellum mansions, historic sites, classical Greek architecture and a glittering new symphony hall offer cultural pursuits. The Ryman Auditorium, a landmark since its completion in 1892, has served as a tabernacle, assembly hall, and theater as well as one time home of the Grand Ole Opry.
Outstanding restaurants, down-home diners serving home baked biscuits, and chic cocktail lounges have earned national acclaim. Then there’s the natural beauty of the place. Nashville’s eye-catching skyline is ringed by lovely countryside with wooded hills, picturesque farms, scenic rivers and lakes.
Audi Club’s Southeast Chapter President Mike Gillespie, Matt Voss and volunteers have planned an amazing, jam-packed four days of fun including:
▪ Stay at beautiful Gaylord Opryland Hotel
▪ Reception at Audi of Nashville
▪ Fun Slalom and new Audi models
▪ Scenic drives
▪ Southern breakfast at Puckett’s Boathouse in Franklin with live music
▪ Jack Daniels Distillery Tour and lunch in Lynchburg Room with live music!
▪ Belle Meade Plantation Tour
▪ Lunch in Carriage House and wine tasting
▪ Natchez Trace Parkway Drive
▪ Downtown Lynchburg and historic Franklin visit
▪ 24th Annual Classic Car Show
▪ Southern breakfast in world famous Loveless Barn with live music
▪ Saturday evening Banquet atdistinctive antebellum Gaylord Spings Golf Club, with live music and dancing!
To keep you hopping there’s enough free time to tour downtown Nashville, Broadway honky tonks, General Jackson Showboat cruise, Grand Ole Opry, Wild Horse Saloon, Blue Bird Café, golf, Ryman Theater, Hermitage (General Jackson’s home), Country Music Hall of Fame, Lane Motor Museum and more. No time to snooze!
The Music in Music City
Nashville is a city with a foundation built on more than musical roots. Today those roots have grown firmly into a platform for which the city heralds its signature product. Nashville’s most famous attractions are directly music-related. Touting the music that has made Music City famous, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is more than just a storage house of country’s colorful past. It is dedicated to the preservation of music and music education.
Since 1892, the Ryman Auditorium has been home to musicians, actors and comedians. Wanting guests to experience the Ryman as the stars do, the facility offers backstage tours, plus a unique visitor opportunity for guests to record a song in an onsite recording booth in the auditorium. Seen as an art museum by many, the FristCenter for the Visual Arts, a center specializing in exhibiting premiere collections on loan from other galleries around the world, is a place where the entire community can embrace all forms of art including music — on Thursday and Friday evenings, the Frist offers live music in their Grand Lobby.
Even the hotels are carrying a tune by displaying exhibits on loan from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, playing live music in the public spaces and posting directional signs with famous music lyrics.
Music is the essence of Nashville. It is the ribbon that weaves the city together, intertwining history, arts, culture and sports into one dynamic cultural package. From gospel spirituals and bluegrass to modern pop and blues, Nashville is MusicCity.
Gaylord Opryland Hotel
Members will stay at the award winning ‘Best of the South’ Gaylord Opryland Hotel on the banks of the Cumberland River. Within this landmark Nashville hotel beats the heart of MusicCity. Gaylord Opryland is a Southern treasure where you will be amazed at the nine acres of indoor gardens, glass atriums, cascading waterfalls and an indoor river with its own Delta flatboat. Opryland boasts six stylish and contemporary new restaurants that serve a range of cuisine, including Revello’s southern Italian and Solario’s Mexican dishes.
During your stay at Gaylord Opryland, enjoy a luxurious spa and salon, state-of-the-art fitness facility, pristine swimming pools, unique dining and incredible shopping experiences. Cutting edge clothiers, distinctive boutiques, retro gifts and wine accessories are just steps away from your room.
NashvilleInternationalAirport is eight miles from the hotel, and an airport shuttle service is available. Local attractions, such as Gaylord Springs Golf Course, are just ten minutes away. The Gaylord was sold out this past October, so please reserve your rooms now. The hotel is a destination in itself! Audi Club member special rate $150 plus tax/resort fee. Rate also available four days pre and post event. To reserve a room please call 615.883.2211 and identify yourself as part of Audi Club North America – Annual Meeting – Group Code X-AUDI3.
Join Audi Club North America members for an unparalleled experience in Nashville, Tennessee. Immerse yourself with fellow Audi Fans in a city with small town warmth and urban sophistication for an unforgettable journey making memories.
Bits of Nashville History-Part I
Drama, adventure, intrigue
First Inhabitants
The first Nashville settlers arrived in 1779, but the land was first a home, hunting ground, and burial site for prehistoric Indians. Evidence of large Paleo-Indian villages has been found that suggest Paleo tribes lived in Nashville 11,000 years ago. The Mississippi culture of Indians, known as mound builders, inhabited the area from about AD 1000 to AD 1400. Around the middle of the 15th century, the villages mysteriously disappeared, and the area became a hunting ground for Cherokee, Chickasaw, Creek and Shawnee tribes.
In the late 1600s French traders from Canada established a trading post. Jacques-Timothe De Montbrun, a tall, dark-skinned man built a hut and bought furs from the Indians. He is often referred to as the “first citizen” of Nashville.
The Jackson era
In 1784 Nashborough became Nashville. The English “borough” was replaced with the French “ville,” most likely as a sign of appreciation for France’s assistance during the American Revolution against Great Britain.
In 1796 Tennessee became the 16t state in the Union. Andrew Jackson in credited for much of the city’s growth and influence during the first half of the 19th century. After arriving as a 21-year-old prosecutor, he achieved financial success partly because he accepted land grants as payment for his services.
Jackson married Rachel Donelson-Robards who had separated from her husband Lewis Robards. Andrew and Rachel repeated their vows after discovering—among something of a social scandal—that Rachel’s divorce from her first husband had never been made official. The Jackson marriage remained a topic of gossip for quite some time.
Tennessee got its nickname as the VolunteerState during the War of 1812 when volunteer soldiers from Tennessee displayed uncommon valor fighting under General Andrew Jackson to defeat the British at the Battle of New Orleans.
Jackson, a colorful figure described as both a “roughneck” and a “gentleman,” became a national hero for his role in the 1812 war, leading the troops to victory. Jackson had a reputation among his troops as a tough-as-nails military man, and, after one of his soldiers said he was as tough as hickory wood, Jackson’s nickname became “Old Hickory.” Numerous reminders of the nickname remain throughout Nashville today.
Bid for presidency
In 1824, despite winning the popular vote, Jackson lost his bid for the presidency of the United States to John Quincy Adams. In 1828 he returned victorious becoming the first man from west of the Appalachian Mountains to be elected president. More significant, however, was his role in the founding a new Democratic party characterized by the spirit of reform and interest in the welfare of the common man. The roots of today’s Democratic Party date from this time.
Having a hometown hero in the White House did much to boost Nashville’s reputation. Jackson made several trips to his plantation, the Hermitage, 12 miles northeast of Nashville, often entertaining renowned guests there. His final years were spent at the Hermitage where he is buried wife his wife Rachel in the Hermitage’s garden.
2013 Frank Beddor National Event Itinerary and Registration.
Audi Club North America thanks sponsors for the 29th Frank Beddor National Event!
Please support our sponsors by visiting their websites: Audi USA, Audi AG, Audi Huntsville, Audi Nashville,Harper Audi, and Phil Long Audi
The post Audi Club North America National Meet Planned for Nashville Oct 2-6 appeared first on Fourtitude.com.