by Kevin Cummings, Messenger Staff Writer

Billy Strings, a power bluegrass act, and Sweet Lizzy Project, a rock band hailing from Havana, Cuba, opened the venue with a live TV taping of “Bluegrass Underground,” a PBS show that had filmed at Cumberland Caverns in McMinnville since 2008.

Todd Mayo, creator of Bluegrass Underground, purchased Big Mouth Cave, now known as “The Caverns,” with about 15 acres off  of Payne Cove Road last year to create a permanent site for the show as well as feature a subterranean music venue closer to Chattanooga, Nashville and Atlanta.

Mayo said he had a lot of “positive nervousness” before the first performance on March 24, which was a sell-out.

“Nobody’s ever turned a wild cave into a concert hall before,” he said. “First time that’s ever happened in the history of the world, so I was a little nervous. But ultimately, I was excited because we have such an amazing crew and the hard work had already been done.

“It was a surreal moment and an amazing moment,” he added. “…It’s the world’s oldest and newest, and probably coolest, music venue.”

Lisset Díaz Guevara, singer and songwriter for Sweet Lizzy Project, also called the experience “surreal” and said this was her first time performing in a cave.

“We were in love with this show since the very first time we saw the picture of the cave on Todd’s business card in Havana, Cuba,” she said. “The place is beautiful, the crew is extremely professional and we loved the audience!

“We were the very first artists performing at that cave and it was our first concert in the USA, so that show, the cave, Bluegrass Underground and the Mayos will always have a very special place in our memories and our hearts.”

Díaz Guevara said after being worried about the sound in a natural cave, she was impressed by the quality and beauty of the acoustics. Mayo said when designing acoustics, you try to eliminate angles and even surfaces, but the cave had already done the work over many, many years.

“Water and time sort of entwined to make these amazing acoustics because there’s all these uneven surfaces,” he said. “I was super pleased with the audio and the lighting. It was like we uncovered a treasure. We’ve been carefully excavating dirt one bucket loader at a time for months.”

The Caverns combines Tennessee’s natural beauty and musical heritage and culture, Mayo noted.

Artist manager Cliff Seltzer, 68, was one of the show’s attendees.

“The new cave is spectacular and exceeded all my expectations,” he said.

For more information on The Caverns and upcoming shows, visit thecaverns.com.