The National Quartet Convention (NQC) is an annual gathering of Southern Gospel quartets and musicians. It is held at the Leconte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, United States. History The first National Quartet Convention was held in 1957. J. D. Sumner, Cecil Blackwood and James Blackwood of The Blackwood Brothers were the founders of the famous National Quartet Convention formerly held in Memphis, Tennessee. The National Quartet Convention featured all the major gospel groups at a three-day event at the Ellis Auditorium in Memphis. After the first couple of years, the NQC was moved to Birmingham, Alabama in 1959 and Atlanta, Georgia in 1960. It returned to Memphis in 1961 and was drawing annual crowds of 20,000 by the mid-1960s. Sumner bought the convention in 1971 and moved it to Nashville, Tennessee in 1972, where it remained until 1993. After 1993, it was moved to a new home, Louisville, Kentucky. In 2014 the convention moved to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, which is the home of the Southern Gospel Museum and Hall of Fame. Events Over the years, the National Quartet Convention grew from three days of concerts to a six-day multi-purpose event. A main attraction is the exhibit hall with approximately 500 booths where artists, record labels, CD duplication plants, media entities, booking agents, Christian bookstores, and other industry related organizations display their products and offer their services. The week is largely attended by the older generation but lately due to the popularity of groups such as the Booth Brothers, Signature Sound, Legacy Five, The Collingsworth Family and the Gaither Vocal Band, the fans are becoming younger. Fans meet their favorite artists in the exhibit area. A concert is held each evening in the Leconte Center at Pigeon Forge, typically approaches sellout numbers for the concerts. These concerts years past ran for approximately six hours but in 2009 they have shortened the evening to five hours, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. and feature non-stop music from the major Southern Gospel artists spaced at 10-20 minute intervals. The Singing News used to present the Fan Award on the Thursday night of the week but it was changed to Saturday night in 2009. Afternoons are devoted to showcases, some for new talent and others for conceptual events. For example, a couple of popular showcases have been Mike Speck's "Choral Music Extravaganza." and "Glorious Piano Extravaganza" featuring the best in southern gospel music piano