Brown County Music Center — Local services in Bloomington

2023 update:

We have attended close to a dozen shows now at the Brown County Music Center, and I feel I can now give a more rounded review about our experiences.

Parking is okay, you're gonna pay to park even if you don't choose preferred parking. Some people were not prepared for that. It's a gravel lot for 10.00 regular parking and a paved lot for 20.00 preferred parking. I have never had to park too far out, and I must admit I usually pay the extra 10 to park in preferred (I love my Jeep!!)

The staff, mostly volunteers, are great at providing support and guidance, and we could always locate someone. They direct parking, and they are checking prior to you entering the building to ensure that your purse is the appropriate size. Leave those suitcases at home, you will need a small bag, about the size of a 5×7. They will look in your bag, and you do go through a metal detector. Then you show your tickets and you are in!

Once in, you're pretty much on your own to wander around and get concessions, buy souvenirs, go set in your seat, or go out outside in the over 21 area if you are so inclined. It's a nice fenced in grassy area with a window to the concession stand.

We've seen rock, country, Christian, pop, folk, family entertainment, Christmas specials, and the sound quality has been mostly great... there were some slight issues during a few rock concerts, but it was only when the volume/bass hit a certain level, not continuous. The concessions (two of them, located on each side of the theater entrance), food wise, are okay. It's what you would expect at a concert, I guess; hot dogs, walking nachos, pretzel, popcorn, etc. There are several options for beer drinkers covering a variety of domestic and imported. Also, wine, non alcoholic and water. You have to surrender your bottle cap, though. Seems to bother some, I was used to it after the 3rd time, handed it over unasked.

There really isn't a bad seat in the house unless, of course, someone stands up in front of you, and I've seen that happen a few times, but only a few outside of the PIT area. I expect that in the PIT and have seen the PIT goers round the stage for almost every concert we've attended. The seats are comfortable and have cup holders for your drinks. I think that perhaps the seats could have been staggered or set up a little differently as it seems the person in front of me is right in front of me not off to the left or the right a little bit. It hasn't really impacted my view for a concert yet, not to the point where I couldn't see with a little adjustment, at least.

One thing that I've noticed is that they designed the women's restroom with a lot of stalls. That's NICE and efficient! The sink area gets a little congested, but the ladies work it out. I don't know personally, but hear from my hubby that the men's room does not have as many available 'slots' and I can attest that in the concerts where I have gone to the RR, the men's line was pretty darn long. It is an interesting converse from what I'm used to in other music venues, and I like it!

Leaving a concert can always be an exercise in patience and forgiveness, but the staff does a good job of directing exiting vehicles and getting concert goers to their own.

I am impressed by the variety that BCMC brings to Nashville, and I appreciate their efforts! I will continue to attend events and promote this venue!

Prior to 2023: Wonderful staff and great venue! We have several tickets for the Music Center that we had previous to 2020. We are now starting to attend those events. This is the first time we've been able to attend events in the music center, and we were very surprised, pleasantly, with the establishment. Staff did a wonderful job of guiding everyone through the process. And we were able to come and go as we wanted before the event. Things are overly priced in the concession area and for souvenirs, but what do you expect? I walked around, and I didn't think there was a bad seat in the house. I'm looking forward to the...

I am sharing my ticket experience with the Brown County Music Center in hopes that their box office team will take some initiative to accurately portray the seating on the Ticketmaster website. For the Great White/Slaughter show I bought what was called "preferred seating" in Sec BALC-L, Row BB, Seat 601. I attended another show at the venue about a month prior to this concert, so decided to check out my seat for the upcoming concert (see photo). When I bought the ticket, there was no mention of it having an obstructed view and this certainly would not fit the definition of "preferred seating". I went to the Brown County Box office, shared the photo, and asked them to move me to seat which did not have an obstructed view for the upcoming concert. The box office told me that Ticketmaster locks down the box office's ticket options after the ticket was sold, so there was nothing that Brown County could do. I was told to contact Ticketmaster. I contacted Ticketmaster and they said I should contact the Brown County box office because they are responsible for defining seating and whether it is obstructed view or not. Went back to the box office and was told I would need to go through my credit card to dispute the charge. Followed the box office's suggestion and disputed the charge through my credit card with photos of the obstructed view. Final result? Ticketmaster responded that "all sales are final" so essentially tough luck. Not very happy especially after all the time I spent involved in someone else's back and forth blame game. Now, to Brown County's credit, the night of the actual show I went back to the box office with my photo of the obstructed view seat and they moved me to a comparable seat. However, this entire situation should not of occurred in the first place. Brown County box office, you have been in business since 2019, may I suggest you get out of the office and go sit in the seats in your own venue. Accurately portray each ticket as to if they are obstructed view and disclose as such on Ticketmaster's site. Then the customer can make an informed decision. This can't possibly be the first time this issue has been raised. It can only be construed as an intentional "oversight" at best, or outright decision to mislead customers. Do better Brown County...

I attended this venue for the first time to see Steve O the other day. I always look up reviews of different places just to see if there's anything I should make note of. To address one concern I saw - they do indeed have two tiers of parking - paved and unpaved, both of which are right next to each other. The parking was very easy, and compared to other venues I've been to, is affordable. The next concern I saw was the staff, with some reviews saying the staff was rude - I noted the reviews that mentioned staff "barking orders" at people to empty their pockets and go through the metal detectors with their hands above their heads. This practice is NOT uncommon, and I'm personally grateful they take such a safety measure. They also did not come off as "barking orders" when I was there. Every single staff member I spoke with greeted me with a smile and was very pleasant to talk to. They were all informed and helpful with any questions. Now, this venue is STUNNING! It's one of the nicest ones I've ever been to, and as a working musician for over a decade, that should tell you something. There is genuinely not one bad seat in this place, which is unique. I've been at venues where there would be seats directly behind pillars and you couldn't see anything. I was initially seated in the pit on the right side, but as a larger fellow, seats sometimes don't work for me. This was a fact I was well aware of, and accepted as a possibility for this show. Sure enough, the seat was a little small for me. This is not a venue issue at all - its a me issue. I went back up to the box office, and explained the situation, and they actually gave me a comp ticket for a seat that was significantly more comfortable for me. And, I'd argue, had a better view as I could see more of the screen. The food was DELICIOUS and the employees handling the food were very friendly. Do yourself a favor, GET THE BBQ PULLED PORK NACHOS! Overall, my experience at Brown County Music Center was absolutely incredible, and if you find yourself at a show here, I believe you will have the time of your life. Special shout out to the employees for...