by Steve “Tuna” Tornovish
The circle in the middle of the stage of the Grand Ole Opry is considered sacred ground in the country music world. The greatest players of that genre have stood in the six-foot circle and performed for millions of adoring fans. The circle was cut from the stage of the hallowed Ryman Auditorium in 1974 and placed in the newly constructed Grand Ole Opry stage, located a few miles outside of downtown Nashville. The Ryman, the original home of the Opry, had fallen on hard times. It needed significant repairs. And the show needed to go on.
The circle represents the roots of country music. When a performer stands in it, they carry an awesome responsibility. Brad Paisley is quoted on the Opry.com website as saying, “I think keeping, physically and metaphorically, this bond with the past separates the Opry from almost all other musical institutions. I’ve always said that the circle still contains the dust from Hank William’s cowboy boots. Now it contains that dust but also the heart and soul of this town and all the people who have worked to rise above.”
I recently had an opportunity to fish with two amazing young musicians who stood in that very circle at the Grand Ole Opry and played for a packed house. And I wanted to know all about it!
Gabe Zinzer is a local kid. He’s quiet, smart and intense. Always has been. I first met Gabe when I was running the musical show “Island Tunes” at the old Faregrounds restaurant. Gabe’s dad Jason had reached out to me to say that his son, a seventh grader at the time, played the mandolin and would love to play the show. Gabe showed up with Chris Westerlund, his instructor at the time. They played some bluegrass tunes. It was clear to see that Gabe was onto something.
Gabe also fell in with a bunch of local kids who loved music. They formed the band Local Notes, a group that is still playing all over the island during the the summer. I loved watching the young members of their group grow and reach their potential.
When it came time for college, Gabe wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He had been accepted at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, but the fit didn’t feel right to Gabe. I suggested that he look at Belmont University. Through a series of misadventures, Gabe ended up joining my wife, sisters, and me on a previously scheduled trip to Nashville. This allowed Gabe to play his mandatory audition. Belmont’s music department was impressed. The young mandolin player from the little island of Nantucket was in!
Gabe also picked up a gig on his first day in Nashville, of course. He and I had gone out early for breakfast and ended up at the Willie Nelson museum. Gabe saw a guitar hanging on the wall and picked it up (note to kids: not advisable to do this). He quickly tuned it and started to play The Entertainer by Scott Joplin. A very stern looking lady emerged from an office and stood in front of the unphased Gabe as he picked the song. She said, “Young man, I’ve been teaching guitar for four decades. That’s amazing! Who are you?”
Gabe, without missing a note, introduced himself and said that he was actually a mandolin player. The woman replied that she, her husband, and two other musicians had a bluegrass quartet. She played guitar. They had a bass player, a fiddle player, and a banjo player. But no mandolin player. She invited Gabe to join them at a large local restaurant to play a few songs that evening. Gabe did, and he ended up playing with them for the entirety of their set!
So, to summarize, Gabe had been in Nashville for about fifteen minutes and already had a gig. This is how it goes for Gabe Zinzer.
Gabe found his people at Belmont University. He joined Belmont Bluegrass. The group was featured on the Opry’s April 23, 2026 show. Belmont Bluegrass shared the stage with country and bluegrass music greats like Rhonda Vincent and The Gatlin Brothers. And, more importantly, Gabe played next to a beautiful young lady named Emma Buckner who simply burnt the stage down with her fiddle.
I asked Emma about that moment. She smiled as she recalled the night: “To step on the stage and have the announcer drowned out by the cheering – and then to receive a standing ovation when we finished… it was a dream come true for me! That kind of support fuels you, keeps you pushing towards the next big stage while also allowing you to celebrate all the work it took to get you to that point.”
Emma enrolled at Belmont University one year ahead of Gabe. She’s from Shelby, NC. She said that her musical talents run in this order: fiddle, then singing, mandolin, and, finally, guitar.
I asked Emma how she met her version of the man from Nantucket. “We shared a performance class. He’s a year behind me. We really didn’t know each other until we joined the Foxhounds.”
The Foxhounds includes two other Belmont friends. The four musicians have been on whirlwind tours for the past two summers. This year’s tour took them all over: North and South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky! It was a lot but, as Emma told me, “The grind is the best part. It wouldn’t be worth it if it was easy.”
Gabe decided that Emma needed to come to Nantucket to see what it was all about. That included a beach ride to Great Point with Uncle Stevie to see how Emma would fare when doing battle with a bluefish. We soon found out. I hooked a medium sized fish, and Emma hauled it to the beach. She faced down a fear and touched the beautiful blue. Yes, this young lady fits right in with the island life. Emma Buckner is a keeper!
So what does the future hold for these two young musicians? It’s hard to say, aside from them working on their craft daily. Emma will resume touring with The Dolly Show, a tribute act to the great Dolly Parton in which Emma plays guitar and sings background vocals. “I get to wear a bedazzled black outfit!” She also will be playing fiddle while touring with a young Americana artist named Hunter Flynn. “Hunter is so great! His album is coming out soon. I’m excited!”
Gabe is intent on finishing up his senior year at Belmont. He was working on charts for a gig he had coming up shortly with a band that would be playing in the Broadway area, the main drag in Nashville. Gabe is in constant demand at Belmont, helping his friends with their musical projects.
The sky is the limit for Gabe Zinzer and Emma Buckner. I sure wouldn’t bet against them to be standing in that hallowed Opry circle again real soon.
Steve “Tuna” Tornovish is a Nantucket native who has spent his life fishing from the beaches of his beloved island. He loves to introduce clients to the joy of fishing with his Nantucket Island Fishing Adventures: stevetuna.com
