You may have heard of The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, but are you aware of The White Dove Cafe in Collegedale?
The latter is an adult, coffeehouse-style, contemporary Christian music venue tucked into a room, the Connection Corner, at Collegedale Community Church.
It began in the spring of 2010 and is offered 7-9 p.m. on the third Friday of each month.
Tom Hayes, church life pastor of the congregation, said when he lived in Nashville he visited The Bluebird Cafe and appreciated how it allowed unknown and well-known songwriters to play their music.
"It's a sharing music space, especially for musicians who are not professional," he said of the Collegedale venue. "It's for songwriters who have a testimony, a poem, who want to share a song they've written."
Hayes said he and co-founder Jentry Tillman aren't looking for up-and-coming stars -- Kathy Mattea, Garth Brooks, Dierks Bentley, Kenny Chesney and Taylor Swift played The Birdbird before they were discovered -- but to allow songwriters to share and others to socialize, ask questions and enjoy themselves.
"It's very laid-back," he said. "We don't want it bigger. We want it intimate."
Hayes said the room is set up -- in round tables with candles -- for 35 to 40 people and has attracted an average of 20 to 35 per session.
The area has a public address system, he said, and is geared toward an acoustic piano or guitar.
Though most of the music is contemporary Christian, Hayes said, songwriters can share secular numbers.
"We're not holding them to [Christian]," he said. "It can be a mix but with an inspirational style."
Though the congregation is Seventh-day Adventist, Hayes said, songwriters and listeners do not have to be. And visitors are not given a denominational pitch or hounded with literature, he said.
"We're encouraging any musicians -- anybody who wants to come and share music," he said. "We do not want to make it intimidating. We encourage talk, [and] people can ask questions. It's a community sharing program."
Hayes said coffee, hot chocolate, cookies, pretzels and other light refreshments are available.
He said he had no specific long-range plans for The White Dove Cafe but hoped it would continue to offer an evening of Christian fellowship with a changing group of artists.
"We want to keep it fresh, keep it moving," Hayes said. "We'd love for everybody to come."
The next White Dove Cafe will be March 16.
Musicians interested in performing are asked to call the church office at 396-5464.
The church is at 4995 Swinyar Drive on the hill overlooking Collegedale City Hall.
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