Huntsville hasn’t exactly always been known for its music

scene. There have always been hints of it – pockets of

talent, big-time touring artists rolling through the city, a

strong legacy of creativity – but as a whole, it lacked cohesion,

infrastructure, and momentum. That’s no longer the case.

Today, Huntsville is a model for how cities can elevate the arts

while fueling economic growth. From touring grants for area

artists to local showcases, sound engineers, and food trucks, a

new kind of music economy is taking root in the city – and thriving.

That depth of talent is now made stronger by many venues and

institutions working in tandem throughout Huntsville.

Huntsville EVENT Magazine recently sat down with leaders

from a few of these organizations, the Von Braun Center, the

Orion Amphitheater, and the Huntsville Music Office, to get a

firsthand look at how they’re shaping the city’s growing music

scene. In 2022, the City of Huntsville hired its first Music Officer,

Matt Mandrella. Since his arrival, the city has seen a significant

transformation in its approach to entertainment.

“I’d say we’re definitely swinging above our weight class right now

in terms of growth,” Mandrella said.

In May 2022, the statuesque Orion Amphitheater, reminiscent of

the famous coliseum in Rome, helped jumpstart an explosion in

live entertainment.

“A big piece of that is the Orion Amphitheater and the injection

it’s made for tourism, quality of life, and economic growth. But

aside from that, a rising tide raises all boats. The VBC calendar

is continually outperforming itself each year for the past 50 years,

Mars Music Hall being a big piece of that,” Mandrella stated.

The numbers tell the story. Before creating Huntsville’s Music

Office, the city audited the area’s music landscape. The audit

determined Huntsville’s economic impact from music was

estimated at $139 million, a figure that Mandrella says is now likely

surpassed by the combined effect of the Orion and the VBC alone.

Over at the Orion, Alex Craig, the venue’s general manager, has

helped to shape the amphitheater as a versatile location, one as

capable of hosting headliners like Lana Del Ray as it is a farmer’s

market or even something like the all-new Rocket City Pickle Fest

coming to the venue this summer.

He said a good partnership with the city was crucial to the Orion’s

launch and success.

“The city of Huntsville was key in understanding that when you’re

in a market like this, it’s really important to do it big and do it right

if you want to make that mark quick,” Craig said.

Built for intimacy as much as spectacle, the 8,000-seat Orion

features high-end acoustics and sustainable design. Its green

rooms showcase mid-century furniture from Redstone Arsenal

and the now-demolished historic Marshall Space Flight Center

admin building.

“A lot of times people put up pipe and drape to cover the wall in

a locker room. And so for us, it was important to exceed that and

make it a place where people don’t want to hang out on their bus

all day,” Craig said.

Samantha Nielsen, the VBC’s Director of Marketing and PR,

has spent the past year helping coordinate the center’s 50th

anniversary campaign and tracing its historic role in the city’s

cultural growth.