A Self-Guided Tour
Add this guide to your home screen for easy access as you discover the charms of Asheville and beyond.
Welcome to the cultural heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains—where art, history, music, and innovation converge in one unforgettable region.
This self-guided tour is your invitation to explore more than a century of remarkable cultural treasures across Asheville and Western North Carolina. From hidden studios and historic landmarks to soulful street murals and legendary music venues, this guide helps you uncover the spirit that has made this region a wellspring of American creativity.
Step off the beaten path and dive into a world shaped by generations of artists, craftspeople, musicians, writers, chefs, and visionaries. Here, Appalachian roots meet avant-garde experimentation—from the groundbreaking legacy of Black Mountain College to the handmade excellence of Penland School of Craft. You’ll discover the places that launched movements, shaped music genres, and redefined American art.
Let the stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Thomas Wolfe linger among the city’s literary corners. Hear echoes of folk, jazz, and Americana carried through the hills by pioneers like Jimmie Rodgers—and still resonating today in Asheville’s vibrant music scene.
Admire the preserved beauty of Art Deco architecture and immerse yourself in the thriving galleries, studios, and culinary artistry that make Asheville a magnet for creatives and adventurers alike.
Whether you’re visiting in person or exploring from afar, our interactive guide makes it easy to connect with the soul of this remarkable region.
🗺 Add this guide to your home screen and begin your journey.
🎧 And wherever life takes you, let the sounds of Asheville follow—stream our audio companion at wpvmfm.org, your passport to the creative spirit of the Blue Ridge.
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Asheville & Western North Carolina: The Deep Roots and Lasting Impact of a Musical Mecca
Few places in America possess the rich musical history and vibrant cultural blend of Asheville and Western North Carolina. For centuries, these Blue Ridge Mountains have echoed with songs born from a unique mix of traditions—Scottish, English, German, Welsh, Cherokee, African American, and more—all weaving their melodies into the soundtrack of the region and, ultimately, of the nation itself.
Nestled between the ancient Appalachian and Blue Ridge mountains, Asheville, North Carolina, is a forward-thinking city with a rich history as a haven for artists. As the city continues to expand, its vibrant arts community thrives, offering an ever-increasing array of compelling reasons to explore this Southern epicenter of artistic expression.
Asheville’s world-class art scene has been a fact for over a century. People are drawn to the region for the world-class artsy vibe. Home to the former Black Mountain College, an active local vibrant art scene and art schools in the region add to the mystique.
No other expression of the true spirit of a city is as reflective of it’s culture as the architecture of a city. Asheville has the second-largest collection of art deco buildings in the southeast, making it a charming jewel of the south. The sophisticated deco architecture and craftsmanship were partly due to George Vanderbilt bringing European craftsmen and artisans to Asheville to build the Biltmore Estate and Biltmore Village. Many of those expert craftsmen, stone carvers, and woodworkers stayed and built other unique buildings in Asheville.
Asheville and WNC’s neo-bohemian vibe is expressed vividly in the local and regional writers and theater scene.
Asheville has a rich literary heritage that has attracted many famous authors throughout the 20th century and into the present day. Among these notable writers are F. Scott Fitzgerald, Thomas Wolfe, and Carl Sandburg.
This section is a work in progress. Stay tuned.
The high French Broad Valley is where one of the world’s oldest rivers in the world begins just northwest of the Eastern Continental Divide near the northwest border of South Carolina. The headwaters spill from the 50-foot-high Courthouse Falls near Balsam Grove. Then, it flows through the high valley north to merge with the Clinch, then the Tennessee River around Knoxville. From there, it flows over to the Mississippi, and like the river, the culture of WNC flows out to the world. The European settlers of the region lived a hardscrabble, mostly self-sufficient life in the hills and hollers. The most common of the settlers were from northern Europe, Ireland, Scotland, and England. Music was how they entertained and communicated. They hunted and eked out a life while constantly living under threat from the harsh elements and Indian confrontations. This pioneer life gave them almost superhuman abilities, as the British learned in the “Overmountan Men” battle at Kings Mountain in 1780 that turned the Revolutionary War in the Union’s favor and led to the founding of America. That “grit” is woven into the music and culture of the region.
According to historian Cecil Sharp, who wrote “I found myself for the first time in my life in a community in which singing was as common and almost as universal a practice as speaking.
——Cecil Sharp, 1916
Use our audio souvenir and escape to Asheville on any device.
Immerse yourself in authentic local culture with WPVM-FM, Asheville’s voice of the community. Our non-commercial, listener-supported radio brings you:
- Diverse music you won’t hear anywhere else
- Engaging talk shows and interviews with area artists
Stream live or download your favorite shows – it’s like taking a piece of Asheville with you wherever you go. Escape to the heart of the Blue Ridge, right from your device. Listen live from our website https://www.wpvmfm.org
Or download our app from iTunes or Google Play
