When it comes to listening to live music in Texas, fans both devoted and casual can find great bands and original acts performing round every corner, from inside an historic dance hall, to urban clubs, theaters, concert halls, or on an outdoor stage in a rodeo arena.

But the truest way to enjoy Texas music just might be kicking back in an outdoor cafe, sampling continental cuisine with cool drinks, surrounded by like-minded souls and the sounds, scents, and starlight provided by a Hill Country night.

That is the experience music fans and visitors will find on any given weekend in Blanco, according to Libbey Aly, Executive Director of the Blanco Chamber of Commerce.

“You can go out and see and hear these amazing musicians in an intimate setting,” Aly said. “You can sit and enjoy the famous Reuben sandwich at the Redbud Cafe, listen to Erik Hokkanen and Bobby Mack, or hear a single, duo, trio, or a string quartet. You can’t do that in the city.”

The town of Blanco has always been attractive to musicians and artists. Through the years, Blanco has maintained its heritage, even as many more have moved here, or made it a regular stop from their base in Austin. All add color and depth to the growing number of interesting listening venues popping up around the square.

It is impossible to chronicle all the “amazing” musical talents that have made Blanco County their base of operations, which would include national recording artists, touring acts, and Grammy Award winners. Aly provided a starting list:

Bobby Mack

Fort Worth native Bobby Mack moved to Austin in the days of the Armadillo World Headquarters, helping lay down the soundtrack for the music scene alongside Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan, Albert Collins, and Luther Allison.

(Real Ale actually purchased what was the original stage from the old Armadillo World Headquarters, Ground Zero for the Texas Outlaw movement among other ground-breaking groups that spontaneously erupted in the 1970s. Talk about tangible connections.)

Erik Hokkanen

The Austin-based artist was born into a musical family, playing piano, mandolin, and sax before trying harmonica, then fiddle and guitar. Hokkanen has become a legend among Austin musicians, and is revered in the Netherlands. By age 21, he was Florida State Fiddle champ, and toured with Gary P. Nunn. He is a professor of Music at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, and member of the Kerrville Folk Festival Music Hall of Fame and the Texas Western Swing Hall of Fame

Peter Rowan

For many years Blanco was home base for Peter Rowan, “who has played around here forever,” according to Ely. Rowan’s career began in bluegrass back in 1964 when he caught legend Bill Monroe’s attention and became part of the Blue Grass Boys. The innovative musician continued to evolve went on to break ground in blues, reggae, honky-tonk, rockabilly, and innovative styles called twang and groove.

Bobby Flores

Bobby Flores is a Grammy Award winning fiddler, arranger, composer, and session musician who has recorded with all the top Texas talent from Willie to Ray Price, Johnny Bush, and Doug Sahm. He continues to tour with his band, frequently playing venues around Central Texas and beyond.

Even Libbey’s husband, Brandon Aly, is part of the “Blanco and beyond” music scene, as drummer for Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians and Zydeco Blanco, and can be caught sitting in with the aforementioned Bobby Mack

But fame and award-winning resumes are not required for an enjoyable experience. The hills are alive with the songs and sounds of talented musicians, who were either raised here or got here just for the musical reputation and inspirational setting. Blanco is also being discovered by those driving over from cities, near and and far, who are seeking something both real and intangible to create their own Texas experience.

Twin Sisters Dancehall

Aly acknowledges the past year has been different from any other with the pandemic challenges, but that is another part of Texas tradition and is another reason listening to live music in a setting like Blanco is preferable to the big-city gatherings.

“It’s been a tough year, but that toughness is part of the Texas music scene,” she said. “Everybody’s doing a really good job of kind of bobbing and weaving and it’s still just an ongoing situation.”

Clubs have made accommodations such as opening outdoor stages, distanced seating, self-served drinks, and adjusting crowd capacities.

“They are doing a great job of keeping an eye on the horizon and being willing to make adjustments on the fly when situations come up. I think it’s going to be that way for awhile yet.”

One thing is for sure. When it comes to Texas music, there is no one way to experience it, and it will be different for every person, on any given night, in any given location.

But there might be no better place to begin than in Blanco.

A list of clubs and venues that currently feature live music (please check for latest schedules):

Redbud Cafe

Old Ironhorse Saloon

Old 300 BBQ

(from time to time)

Real Ale Brewing Company

Tenuta Bianco Bar & Grocer

Texas Cannon Brewing and Restaurant

Blanco River Pizza Company

Rough Diamond Brewing Company (Spring Branch)

Blanco Performing Arts at Uptown Ballroom