Andrew J. Brady Music Center

(Redirected from ICON Music Center)

39°05′48″N 84°30′49″W / 39.096561°N 84.513476°W / 39.096561; -84.513476

Andrew J. Brady Music Center
Brady Music Center
Map
Address25 Race St.[1]
Cincinnati, OH 45202
LocationThe Banks
Public transitLight rail interchange Connector
Bus interchange Metro
Bus interchange TANK
Bicycle facilities Red Bike
OwnerMusic and Event Management, Inc.
TypeOutdoor music venue
Indoor theater
Capacity8,000 outdoor
4,500 indoor
Construction
Built2019–2021
OpenedJuly 22, 2021
Construction costUS$27 million
Website
www.bradymusiccenter.com

The Andrew J. Brady Music Center is a music venue in Cincinnati, Ohio, located in The Banks neighborhood on the Ohio River. The venue opened in July 2021. The year-round facility includes an outdoor stage for concerts and festivals in the park adjacent to the venue.

History

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After months of negotiations, Hamilton County commissioners and Cincinnati City Council approved in November 2019 the finalization of plans to construct a music venue at The Banks, adjacent to Paul Brown Stadium and Smale Riverfront Park. The venue would be built and operated by Music and Event Management, Inc. (MEMI), the nonprofit concert arm of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.[2]

In December 2019, MEMI announced that the under-construction venue would be named the Andrew J. Brady ICON Music Center after Andrew J. Brady, a local musician and music educator.[3] In December 2021, owner MEMI removed ICON from the venue's name "to better elevate" the venue's namesake.[4]

The center's inaugural concerts were held in July 2021, with Kem opening the indoor venue on the 22nd and Foo Fighters as the first headline act for the outdoor festival stage on the 28th.[5]

Andrew J. Brady

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The music venue bears the name of a local educator Andrew J. Brady.[6] Born on January 3, 1915, to a musical family in Jonesboro, Arkansas, Brady mastered the trumpet, violin, and piano and began writing and arranging his own music before his teenage years.[6] After a brief stint at Arkansas State University, Brady transferred to the Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati (now known as University of Cincinnati). Brady taught music at the Rothenberg Elementary School in Over-the-Rhine before taking on the position of music director at Western Hills High School.[6] His professional tenure lasted from 1944 to 1976 as an orchestra and band director, known for his Bandwagon variety shows and football halftime shows. Andrew J. Brady passed away on January 10, 2004.[6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "See a 360-Degree Rendering of the Andrew J. Brady ICON Music Center at The Banks". CityBeat. May 18, 2020. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
  2. ^ Wartman, Scott; Coolidge, Sharon (November 21, 2019). "Banks Music Venue gets final council approval. Set to open fall 2020". Cincinnati Enquirer. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
  3. ^ "New music venue at The Banks named after longtime Cincinnati musician". WLWT. December 11, 2019. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
  4. ^ Jordan, Felicia (December 13, 2021). "ICON no more: Riverfront concert venue changing its name". WCPO. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  5. ^ Fening, Madeline (June 1, 2021). "Foo Fighters coming to new ICON Music Center". WCPO. Archived from the original on June 1, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d Mitchell, Madeline (December 11, 2019). "New venue at The Banks named after local music teacher: 'These kids never forgot him'". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
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