Tunes from the Tombs at Oakland Cemetery

By Laura D. Soldati
On June 8, 2013 from 1:00pm to 8:00pm, the Historic Oakland Foundation will present the third annual Tunes from the Tombs music festival at Historic Oakland Cemetery. This fundraising event features musicians performing in and among Oakland’s extraordinary monuments, mausoleums, and renowned gardens. All genres of music will be represented: rock, folk, Americana, jazz, classical, and everything in between.
Tickets are available at www.TicketAlternative.com. Adults are $10 online, or $15 at the gate. Children ages 4-12 are $5 (3 and under are free). More info can be found at www.oaklandcemetery.com.
The festival line-up includes: Blair Crimmins and the Hookers, Old 4th Ward Afro-Klezmer Orchestra, Bird City Revolutionaries, The Bonaventure Quartet (featuring Amy Pike), Caroline and the Ramblers, Roxie Watson, Slim Chance and the Convicts, Rolling Nowhere, Little Country Giants, Wasted Potential Brass Band, and more.
To soothe your spirits, Tunes from the Tombs will have plenty of beer and wine. Local Atlanta food trucks will be serving a variety of tasty festival fare. Festival attendees can also take a complimentary guided mini-tour, or have their fortunes read by Atlanta’s own Robyn Avalon.
Parking is $5 at the Grady Health Systems parking lot located behind the King Memorial MARTA station on Grant Street, and in the Oakland Cemetery parking lot. In keeping with Historic Oakland Foundation’s green initiative, festival attendees are encouraged to ride MARTA to the King Memorial Station.
Bring a blanket or lawn chair. No coolers or outside food allowed. Dogs are not allowed due to Atlanta city ordinance.
All proceeds benefit Historic Oakland Foundation. The work of the foundation is supported by grants from charitable foundations, individuals, and events like Tunes from the Tombs.
About Historic Oakland Cemetery: Oakland Cemetery is a 48-acre Victorian-style garden cemetery founded in 1850. It is one of the largest park spaces and significant cultural sites in metro Atlanta. Among the approximately 70,000 interred at Oakland are: Gone With the Wind author Margaret Mitchell and golf great Bobby Jones, 27 former Atlanta mayors including Maynard Jackson, six former governors, the unmarked graves of paupers, Confederate and Union soldiers, a Jewish section, and an African American section. The grounds of the cemetery are an example of the 19th-century landscape idea of a cemetery-park and provide an ideal setting for its profusion of Victorian cemetery art.
Historic Oakland Foundation was founded in 1976, the same year Oakland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Foundation partners with the City of Atlanta to preserve, restore, enhance, and share Oakland Cemetery with the public as an important cultural resource and an island of tranquility in the heart of the city. For more information about donations, tours, events, and other ways to support Oakland, please visit www.oaklandcemetery.com or call at 404-688-2107.