Our History

The story of Blue Bamboo is the story of husband and wife team, Chris and Melody Cortez. Chris is an accomplished musician and Melody is a visual artist. Together they created the Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts in 2016. 

Chris says “I imagined a recording studio or sound stage, but with a twist. I wanted to invite an audience to the sessions.”

At the time, there were very few places where a group could perform in a small concert setting, let alone record and film it. With no experience running a venue, the Cortez' learned as they went along. They risked their retirement savings and leased a warehouse on Kentucky Ave in Winter Park, converting it into a studio w/audience, and created the 501(c)(3) BBCFA.

Located on a dark street in an old, beat-up metal building, first timers would arrive, see the modest location and say to each other ”this can't be it," but once inside, they were transported to a world class, listening room, and the idea caught on.

“The key was the level of talent and production. We couldn't afford to make a million dollar venue, but we had been running a record company for years. We knew how to mix and light a band, and how to spot talent.”

It should be said that Chris and Melody wear a lot of hats. Chris is a producer for their record label, musician, recording artist, visual artist, audio engineer, and the list goes on and on. Melody is a visual artist, grant writer, front of house manager, and keeps everything running smoothly. 

Chris is constantly learning and growing, and that spirit of growth is filtered into his music. He leads by example. In a featured article in Winter Park magazine he said “Start with it's possible, and the rest is logistics.” He lives by that mantra, believing all of us are capable of great things.

For the next 7 years, Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts (simply “the Boo” to many), became the top choice for discerning listeners. Jazz was the primary bill of fare, but they also hosted R&B, Flamenco, Classical, Blues, Folk, Bossa Nova, Samba, community theater, and dance. Chris performed often in the space, but opened it up to hundreds of local and traveling groups. Grammy winners and unknowns alike would stop by, do an intimate set, and the Boo would quickly become their favorite stop on the tour.

Cortez' philosophy is all about community.

“Ideally, music is a business of referrals. A healthy music scene needs a community of musicians who treat each other as colleagues, not competitors.”

With that mindset, the Boo became a go-to place for collaborative projects. Big bands of all kinds, jam sessions, and what-if scenarios, all leading to a healthy environment for creativity. Audiences might attend a conservative, classical recital one day, and the next, a reimagining of Led Zeppelin as a latin salsa band. (That actually happened!)

As all that was happening, and much to the delight of Chris and Melody, the musical community around them was changing for the better. Other venues also adopted the model of community, spaces for listening appeared, and the idea of ticketed events became normalized, even for small, local groups.

“Ticketed events are the key to an artist surviving outside of a background music environment, where they are basically musical servants. If an artist can deliver an audience for their own thing, they can control their economic future, and play whatever they like.”

The idea of community is not limited to the musicians. In their time at Kentucky Ave, Bamboo hosted many benefit concerts for food insecurity, hurricane relief, and homelessness. They supported community orchestras, teaching initiatives, master classes, and rehearsals. During the pandemic, the unique nature of their design as a recording studio, led to the development of a huge archive of recorded music, available for free on their YouTube channel. They implemented the idea of “Community Tickets.” When someone has bought a ticket and can't attend, they can donate their ticket to someone less fortunate. Community tickets are available for most shows.

Sadly, in 2023 developers bought the Blue Bamboo property on Kentucky Ave, and raised the rent over 300%. The Boo, now backed by 10,000 or so of their supporters began looking for new digs. A series of satellite shows in various venues around town followed and in August of 2024, the city of Winter Park voted to lease them the old library building at 460 E New England Ave, a 33,000 square foot, 3 story building, at a gateway location in Winter Park. For the Bamboo team, the location represents a significant level of growth, enabling arts education, multiple stages, and additional resources for everyone in our area.

This gorgeous facility opened in June 2025,  and is the pride of the Winter Park arts community. In 2026, the Blue Bamboo will have multiple stages, arts education, and more. Blue Bamboo has partnered with the non-profit Performing Arts Matter to continue with their community driven plan,  becoming a true hub for performing arts of all kinds. In a very real sense, a Stage for All.