Large Venues
The Ramkat
The Ramkat is the primary music venue in Winston-Salem. There are 2 venues within space: The Ramkat, which is a two-level, 1,000-person-capacity live music venue, handicap-accessible, and serviced by three bars, and Gas Hill, which is an intimate craft cocktail lounge, drinking room and gathering space that host smaller events.
UNCSA – The Stevens Center
The Stevens Center is the primary performance space for University of North Carolina School of the Arts, the Winston-Salem Symphony, Piedmont Opera Theatre, and several other local & state arts organizations. There are 1,364 seats on two levels, and it’s in an ideal location in the middle of downtown Winston-Salem.
SECCA
With an auditorium inside and a new stage outside, SECCA is set to host a variety of live music shows. They have brought some interesting indie bands in recent years, and they are creatively exploring how to utilize their space for dynamic performances.
Muddy Creek Cafe
While the pandemic has put a major halt to Muddy Creek Cafe‘s musical offerings, we expect this venue to ramp back up soon. Now located in Old Salem, Muddy Creek will likely use the Old Salem Visitor Center as the location for its shows frequently.
Regular Live Music
Jazz Nights
- Tate’s Craft Cocktails on Tuesdays, 8 – 11 pm
- Rec Billiards Whiskey Box on Wednesdays, 9 pm – 12 am
- Foothills Brewpub on Sundays, 5 – 8 pm (check schedule, not always happening)
Open Mic Nights
- Monstercade on Mondays, 8 pm
- Earl’s on Wednesdays, 8 pm
- Muddy Creek Cafe at Old Salem Visitor Center on Thursdays (closed in January)
Breweries & Bars with Regular Offerings
- ROAR – this new venue is offering live music most nights in their food hall; check social media for when and who
- Monstercade – original musical acts on weekends with occasional Drag & Variety shows mixed in
- Earl’s – live music on Fridays & Saturdays @ 9 pm
- Bar Nola – live music most Saturdays & Sundays with additional nights frequently added
- Foothills Tasting Room – live music most Sundays @ 3 – 5 pm
- Foothills Brewpub – Bluegrass on Wednesdays @ 8 – 11 pm
- ARTC Theatre – acoustic night every 2nd Saturday of the month
- Quiet Pint – live music weekly starting in March
- Radar Brewing – check their schedule
- Wise Man Brewing – check their schedule
- Fiddlin’ Fish – check their schedule
- Incendiary Brewing – check their schedule
- ROAR – plan to host regular music once they open
Seasonal Offerings
Downtown Music (summer)
The Downtown Partnership runs 2 free concert series: Downtown Jazz and Summer on Liberty. Concerts usually begin in June or July, check their webpage here for more details.
Summer Parks Concert Series (summer)
Arts Council of Winston-Salem & Forsyth County and Forsyth County Government will present six summer concerts at Triad Park and Tanglewood Park between May and September 2022. These outdoors concerts are free and feature a variety of musical entertainment. Concert dates will be released in mid-spring at intothearts.org.
Coalpit Live
This free concert series began in 2021, and we expect it to return in 2022. Located in the “coal pit” behind Incendiary Brewing, Coalpit Live brought in some exciting names and kept the area packed on the weekends spring through fall.
Gears & Guitars Music Festival
This 3-day festival in Innovation Quarter, offered in tandem with the W-S Cycling Classic, changed its dates in 2021 to September (previously it had been over Memorial Weekend). Stay tuned for what Gears & Guitars has planned for 2022!
More Barn Concerts at Reynolda Village
A few times a year, Reynolda Village hosts concerts in their Barn. Check out the schedule here.
