Much of the city's cultural life has revolved around its large university community. Particularly significant in this respect were two groups of critics and writers who were associated with Vanderbilt University in the early twentieth century, the Fugitives and the Agrarians.

Popular destinations include Fort Nashborough, a reconstruction of the original settlement; the Tennessee State Museum; and The Parthenon, a full-scale replica of the original Parthenon in Athens, Greece. The State Capitol is one of the oldest working state capitol buildings in the nation, while The Hermitage is one of the older presidential homes open to the public. The Nashville Zoo is one of the city's newer attractions.

Country music

Many popular tourist sites involve country music, including the Country Music Hall of Fame, Ryman Auditorium, which was for many years the site of the Grand Ole Opry, and Belcourt Theater. Each year, the CMA Music Festival (formerly known as Fan Fair) brings thousands of country fans to the city.

Nashville was once home to the Opryland USA theme park, which operated from 1972 to 1997 before being demolished to make room for the Opry Mills mega-shopping mall.

Lower Broadway is home to many honky tonk bars and clubs. Probably the most famous of these is Tootsie's Orchid Lounge, which has hosted many big names from the country music scene while remaining small, intimate, and relatively unchanged since its founding in the 1960s.

Christian pop music

The Christian pop and rock music industry is based in Nashville, with many of the genre's most popular acts such as Rebecca St. James, Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, Steven Curtis Chapman, and Newsboys based there. Two members of the band Relient K, Matt Hoopes and Jon Schneck also live in Nashville. One of the most popular Christian bands today, Third Day, regularly records in Nashville, although they are based in Atlanta.

Performing arts

The Tennessee Performing Arts Center is the major performing arts center of the city. It is the home of the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, Nashville Children's Theatre, the Nashville Opera, and Nashville Ballet.

In September 2006, the Schermerhorn Symphony Center opened as the home of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra.

Art museums

Nashville has several arts centers and museums, including the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, located in the former post office building; Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art; the Tennessee State Museum; Fisk University's Van Vechten and Aaron Douglas Galleries; Vanderbilt University's Fine Art Gallery and Sarratt Gallery; and the Parthenon.

Information above provided by Wikipedia.

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