There are many distinctions that make Nashville a popular city for tourists, transplants and locals alike. For instance, the famous Nashville Hot Chicken grew from a modest mom and pop joint to a national icon. The popular Broadway Street, where aspiring musicians and celebrity performances can be heard playing country music into the wee hours of the morning; and the Country Music Hall of Fame where thousands of visitors each year come to experience the rich history of their idols who have played at the nearby Grand Ole Opry and Ryman Auditorium.
Nashville has many endearments, “Athens of the South”, “Smashville”, “Nashvegas” and arguably the most well-known, “Music City, U.S.A.” ARCH Academy is grateful to be in such an eclectic community and has benefited from the Nashville Scene since 1987 when Cumberland Heights first put on its annual benefit concert at the Ryman Auditorium. The goal was to raise money for scholarships for the Young Men’s and Adolescent programs. Prior to the first benefit concert, the Country Music Association (CMA) sponsored the shows, selling roughly 300 seats and, donated the remaining tickets to Cumberland Heights. This would turn out to be the last CMA sponsored concert series. In 1987, Walt Quinn, then Director of Industry and Community Relations took on the job of promoting the concerts, with the help of his connections at the Ryman. “It was completely promoted by Cumberland Heights,” says Walt. “We worked with the writers, production crew and even worked backstage to help everything go smoothly.”
To gain leverage in the promotion of the benefit concerts, Walt contacted well-known singer-songwriter, John Hiatt and Ken Levitan, co-founder and president of Vector Management who helped provide artists that aligned with Cumberland Heights’ mission to offer hope and healing to those affected by addiction. Over the years, Cumberland Heights, along with the help of John and Ken booked artists Trisha Yearwood, Kenny Rogers, Peter Frampton, Josh Turner, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Montgomery Gentry, Trace Adkins and many more. Cumberland Heights/ARCH Academy/Still Waters is forever grateful for the help of John Hiatt and Ken Levitan and as a thank you, named Cumberland’s music therapy room the “Hiatt/Levitan Music Therapy Room”.
Lining the walls of Cumberland Heights/ARCH Academy are the Hatch Show Print — screened printed posters from the concerts over the years. Hatch Show Print, the iconic letter press printing, began churning out these one-of-a-kind posters 141 years ago in Nashville in 1879. Charles and Herbert Hatch moved to Nashville in 1875 with their father, William Hatch, who was a well-known preacher and printer from Wisconsin. At that time, Nashville was the 4th largest printing city in the United States, mostly printing bibles for churches in the south. What makes Hatch Show Prints unique is their creative design process. There is no digital component in the design process of the Hatch Prints until a final picture is sent to the client for approval. “These are letter press printers, we use the same w
ood letter type that the Hatch brothers purchased and made in 1879,” says Celene Aubrey, shop manager and assistant director at Hatch Show Print. “We hand carve our images and prints out of wood blocks. The type never changes but the variety comes through what story we tell through the design”. Even the colors are hand mixed in the shop. “I guess that’s what makes us unique. We design everything we print and print everything we design”.
In the mid-late 20th century, solidified by country music, advertisements became the main printing work for the Hatch Brothers. The main ad company, The Grand Ole Opry, early prints in 1938 promoted DeFord Bailey and Uncle Dave Macon. During the 1980’s, Hatch Show Prints became collectible as radio, TV and the digital age was becoming more popular for advertisements and ticket sales. Over the years, Hatch Show Print has made posters for the Tennessee Titans, Fossil, Nike, KFC and People Magazine. Cumberland Heights/ARCH Academy and Hatch Show Print will forever share a common ground in music. “There is definitely a relationship between Cumberland Heights and Hatch Show Print,” says Aubrey. “We are apart of the same world; we see the work that you guys do, and it helps the music industry immensely.”
