>> Complete SXSW Coverage

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport turned into a concert hall Thursday. Musicians and many others started arriving in droves for the music portion of South by Southwest.

To mark the event, those arriving or departing were greeted by live music being performed by Ray Benson and the Marshall Ford Swing Band. Other bands will share their talent at the airport in the coming days. How's that for Austin hospitality?

A.B.I.A. spokesperson Jason Zielinski says, "We'll have 22 South by Southwest sanctioned live music shows here at the airport. So really, the festival gets started for passengers as soon as they get off the airplane here at the airport."

And travelers were more than pleased. Jaclyn Baudhuin told us, "We love it so far. We walked into this airport and it's so awesome."

Liz Jenkins agreed. "This is just perfect. I mean, you get off the plane, come into the airport, you already got music going. Only in Austin," she said.

Ray Benson of Asleep at the Wheel is from Austin. He says local musicians pushed for the music venue at the airport and there’s no better event to promote Austin as the “Live Music Capital of the World" than during South by Southwest.

Benson says, “We always said, make the airport reflective of what the community is, you know. And the people have been so responsible and so great to allow us to do this. We had to jump through some hoops to do this because they weren't use to it at the beginning. And we said no, it's not going to be a problem and this is incredible."

Some 2,000 bands will be performing all over town the next four days for South by Southwest. Have you heard of Viva City? It’s a British electro dance band that arrived to perform in Austin for the event.

Band member Bruce Tate says this is a momentous occasion for the group. “We’ve never been to the states before. Back in England, South by Southwest is a really big deal. So when we got invited to play, we were like, over the moon," Tate says. But first they have to find his guitars. They ended up on another plane.

For the veterans and for newcomers, South by Southwest has special meaning. Singer-songwriter Radney Foster has been coming for the past 17 years. Foster says, "I think the fact that there are up and coming bands is still the coolest part about it and I wish they had more opportunity for that."

Leon Mobley plays with the Damian Marley and Nas band. "Walking up and down 6th Street, I mean, there's music all over the place. It's just a wonderful feeling to see people being touched by music," Mobley told us.

The South by Southwest Music Festival officially kicks off on Wednesday and culminates Saturday night with the presentation of the Austin Music Awards.