News and Events Archive

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  • 2024 News and Events

    • West Side Sound Oral History Project | Presented by Sylvia Mendoza & Gloria Gonzales
      Monday, February 19, 2024 | 12:30 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

      The West Side Sound Oral History Project is a collaboration between two Mexican American Studies professors from UTSA, two music historians and DJs, and the local community. By focusing on the West Side Sound, a genre of music that draws from conjunto music, r&b, doo wop and other Black musical genres, and by inviting the community to share their stories, this project showcases the contributions made to music and U.S. history by Black and Chicana/o/x communities.

    • Bevis M. Griffin: Texas Black Rock Maverick
      February 24, 2024 | 2:00 PM | Texas Music Museum

      This was an exciting conversation with Bevis M. Griffin about his career in Texas Music. Griffin entered the Austin music scene in the 1970s as a charismatic frontman during the glam rock era that preceded punk. With his band Banzai Kik, Griffin then took the 1980s New York scene by storm, both musically and as an advocate in the Black Rock Coalition alongside members of Living Colour and writer Greg Tate. He has remained a fixture of the music and creative scenes in Austin.

      Bevis was joined in conversation by Texas writer Gene Fowler.

    • Book Talk: Welcome 2 Houston | Langston Collin Wilkins
      Monday, March 25, 2024 | 12:30 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

      In Welcome 2 Houston, folklorist Langston Collin Wilkins returns to the city where he grew up to illuminate the complex relationship between place, identity, and music in Houston’s hip hop culture. Interviews with local rap artists, producers, and managers inform an exploration of how artists, audiences, music, and place interact to create a heritage that musicians negotiate in a variety of ways. Street-based musicians, avant-garde underground rappers, and Christian artists offer candid views of the scene while Wilkins delves into related aspects like slab, the area’s hip hop-related car culture. What emerges is a portrait of a dynamic reciprocal process where an artist, having identified with and embodied a social space, reproduces that space in a performance even as the performance reconstructs the social space.

      We were honored to host Wilkins at the Center for Texas Music History to hear about his important work on Houston hip hop.

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  • 2023 News and Events

    • Architects of Sound: Women of El Paso Punk | Presented by Tara Martin López
      Tuesday, March 7, 2023 | 2:00 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

      Tara Lopez on El Paso Punk

      Dr. Tara Martin López led a riveting discussion about how women in El Paso, Texas led and sustained the city's punk music scene during the borderlands movement in West Texas. From the late 1970s through the early 1990s, El Paso provided unique opportunities for fierce sonic expression and innovation, especially for the Chicanas who dominated the city's musical culture. These women, who are often unheralded in public memory, actively challenged the nativist politics and economic shifts of the decade through their music.

      For more information, visit our Architects of Sound event page.

    • Book Talk: Texas Jazz Singer | Presented by Kevin Mooney
      Wednesday, October 18, 2023 | 3:30 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

      During this presentation, author Kevin Mooney, a professor in the School of Music at Texas State University, offered us a new perspective on Louise Tobin and her impact on jazz music. Louise Tobin was a Texas vocalist who sang with stars such as Benny Goodman, Harry James, and Peanuts Hucko.

      To learn more, visit our Texas Jazz Singer event page.

    • Pursuing a Public History of Entertainment at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History | Presented by John Troutman
      Thursday, November 9, 2023 | 12:30 PM | The Wittliff Collections

      Today the Smithsonian Institution recognizes popular music as an important arena for research, collections, and exhibitions. But that was not always the case, and its methods for engaging audiences in the interpretation of music and entertainment’s complicated past in the U.S. remain unfinished and in flux. In this talk, music curator John Troutman will speak about his work as a public historian and lead curator of the National Museum of American History’s new permanent exhibition, Entertainment Nation.

      To learn more, visit the event page.

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  • 2022 News and Events

    • Texas Black Rock Maverick | Bevis M. Griffin
       Tuesday, November 29, 2022 | 5:00 PM | Taylor Murphy Hall 201

      Bevis M. GriffinMusician Bevis M. Griffin joined in conversation with journalist Kahron Spearman about his career in Texas Music. From Los Angeles by way of Wichita Falls, Griffin entered the Austin music scene in the 1970s as a charismatic frontman during the glam rock era that preceded punk. With his band Banzai Kik, Griffin then took the New York scene of the 80s by storm, both musically and as an advocate in the Black Rock Coalition alongside members of Living Colour and writer Greg Tate. He then returned to Austin, where he has remained a fixture of the music and creative scenes. Conversant Kahron Spearman is a chronicler of the East Austin scene whose work has appeared in the Austin Chronicle and Texas Highways. He is also the host of Discovery with Kahron Spearman on KAZI.

    • Preserving East Austin's Blues and Jazz History | Harold McMillan
      Tuesday, November 15, 2022 | 5:00 PM | Taylor Murphy Hall 101

      Harold McMillanMusician, advocate, and archivist Harold McMillan discussed his decades-long work in preserving the blues and jazz history of East Austin. Through DiverseArts, the East Austin Creative Coalition, and the venue Kenny Dorham's Backyard, McMillan engages in what he calls "active cultural preservation"—celebrating traditional African American expressive culture by strategically developing programmatic and organizational structures intent on keeping these forms alive in contemporary practice.

      For questions or more information contact Dr. Jason Mellard.

    • Putting Freddy Fender in the Country Music Hall of Fame | Veronique Medrano
      Thursday, November 3, 2022 | 3:30 PM | Brazos Hall

      Medrano FenderRecording artist and archivist Veronique Medrano spoke on her campaign to get Freddy Fender in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Fender, born Baldemar Huerta in San Benito, Texas, was among the first tejano artists to reach the top of the country charts in the 1970s. Medrano's campaign is about much more than just getting him his due, however, as it also promotes an overdue conversation on the long and significant Mexican American presence in and influence on the genre of country music.

    • Oral Histories, Community Storytelling, and the Legacy of DJ Screw | Lance Scott Walker and DaLyah Jones
       Thursday, October 6, 2022 | 3:30 PM | Flowers Hall 341

      Oral Histories, Community Storytelling, and the Legacy of DJ ScrewWriters Lance Scott Walker and DaLyah Jones joined in conversation about amplifying voices of local history in Houston and East Texas, including Walker's new biography of DJ Screw.

    • Voice Lessons | Alice Embree
      Monday, March 28, 2022 | 6:30 PM | Taylor Murphy Hall 101

      Alice Embree, Voice LessonsAlice Embree, a lifelong activist and leading Texan in the student, antiwar, and feminist movements of the 60s and 70s, discussed her new memoir, Voice Lessons.

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  • 2021 News and Events

    • Why Bushwick Bill MattersThursday, November 4, 2021
      12:30 pm | Online via Zoom

      Historian Charles Hughes and Associate Professor of Social Work Raphael Travis discussed Hughes's new book on Bushwick Bill of the Geto Boys.

      Visit the Bushwick Bill event page for more information.

       

    • Kathy Valentie LectureThursday, October 14, 2021
      6:30-8:00 pm
      In person at the Performing Arts Center Recital Hall or online via Zoom

      Kathy Valentine was recently elected to the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame for her work with the iconic The Go-Go's, the first all-woman band to top the album charts with songs they composed. She will be joining us to talk about her acclaimed All I Ever Wanted: A Rock 'n' Roll Memoir in conversation with celebrated Texas novelist Sarah Bird. Songwriter for such The Go-Go's hits as Vacation and Head Over Heels, Valentine's debut book is a roller coaster of music, fame, family, the creative process, and struggles with addiction and excess; it’s also a story of what it takes to find success and find yourself, to live in the world with self-awareness, creative spirit, and compassion. Co-sponsored by The Center for the Study of the Southwest.

      Visit the Kathy Valentine event page for more information.

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  • 2020 News and Events

    • Chulita Vinyl Club eventThursday, November 5, 2020
      6:00 pm
      Broadcast on IGTV

      Chulita Vinyl Club is made up of women, gender-non-conforming, non-binary, LGBTQ+ and self-identifying people of color. CVC launched in 2014, with the context of providing a safe space for empowerment, togetherness and to utilize music and vinyl as a form of resistance against the erasure of culture. Each Chulita identifies with their own identity. They are not to be classified as one nationality or culture. Within CVC they individually identify with the following: Latinxs, Tejanxs, Chicanxs, Xicanx, Afro-Latinx, and many more. The unifying denominator is that they come together over the belief that "EL DISCO ES CULTURA," which they believe is worth preserving.

       

    • Nina Diaz event posterThursday, October 15, 2020
      6:00 pm
      Broadcast on IGTV

      Considered "one of the two or three most exciting, scary-good vocalists in rock today" (David Brown, KUT/NPR), Nina Diaz began her musical career at the age of thirteen when she co-founded the all female rock group Girl in a Coma (2002–2018). Three years later, Girl in a Coma was signed to Joan Jett's Blackheart Records, thus beginning many years of extensive traveling, creating, and performing for audiences around the world both as a headlining act as well as a direct support for several highly acclaimed artists.

       

    • Conversation with Pamela hart and James PolkSaturday, September 26, 2020
      2:00 pm
      Facebook Live | @womeninjazzaustin

       

    • Hostile Terrain Event Image

      September 17, 2020
      6:00 pm

      Hostile Terrain 94 (HT94) is a participatory art project created by the Undocumented Migration Project (UMP), a non-profit research and arts-education collective directed by anthropologist Jason De León. This art installation is intended to raise awareness about the realities of the U.S.-Mexico border by focusing on the deaths that have been happening almost daily since 1994 as a direct result of the Border Patrol policy known as “Prevention Through Deterrence” (PTD).

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  • 2018 News and Events

    • An Evening with Randy RogersDecember 9, 2018
      8:00 p.m. Doors
      8:30 p.m. Concert
      Seekatz Opera House, 265 W San Antonio St., New Braunfels, TX 78130

      $1000 VIP Meet and Greet; Limited Packages are available.

      $125 Dinner and Concert
      Dinner at Krause's Cafe at 6:30pm and preferred seating and early entrance to concert. The menu will feature Herb Crusted Fire Roasted Prime Rib, Roasted Marble Potatoes, Grilled Asparagus. 

      $75 Concert
      Seated concert with servers to tables; cash bar. 

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  • 2016 News and Events

    • Killed or Caught, Book coverFor more than forty years, Guy Clark wrote and recorded unforgettable songs. His lyrics and melodies paint indelible portraits of the people, places, and experiences that shaped him. He has served as model, mentor, supporter, and friend to at least two generations of the world’s most talented and influential singer-songwriters. In songs such as “Desperados Waiting for a Train,” L.A. Freeway,” “She Ain’t Going Nowhere,” and “Texas 1947,” Clark’s poetic mastery has given voice to a vision of life, love, and trouble that has resonated not only with fans of Americana music, but also with the prominent artists—including Johnny Cash, Ricky Skaggs, Jerry Jeff Walker, and others—who have recorded and performed Clark’s music.

      Now, in Without Getting Killed or Caught: The Life and Music of Guy Clark, writer, producer, and music industry insider Tamara Saviano chronicles the story of this legendary artist from her unique vantage point as his former publicist and producer of the Grammy-nominated album This One’s for Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark. Part memoir, part biography, Saviano’s skillfully constructed narrative weaves together the extraordinary songs, larger-than-life characters, previously untold stories, and riveting emotions that make up the life of this modern-day poet and troubadour.

      Buy on Amazon!

       

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  • 2015 and Earlier

    • Thursday, April 16, 2015 | 6:30PM | The Wittliff Collections

      The Life and Music of Manuel “Cowboy” DonleyIn June 2014, the National Endowment for the Arts awarded Manuel “Cowboy” Donley the National Heritage Fellowship in recognition of his contributions to American music. Performing in Austin since the 1940s, Donley’s career reflects the rich history of Mexican-American music in Texas from traditional ballads to orquesta tejana and even the electrical amplification of rock ‘n’ roll.

      The Wittliff and the Center for Texas Music History joined together in putting on an evening of conversation, performance, and celebration with musicians and scholars Evaliza Fuentes, Kim Simpson, and Cowboy Donley.

       

    • Kent Finlay, Dreamer, Book coverThough not a household name for the general public, Kent Finlay (1938–2015) was one of the world’s best-known and best-loved promoters, mentors, and gurus of Texas music. In 1974, he founded the Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos as a venue for live music and an incubator for young talent. In 1977, he drove to Nashville and took with him a young, unknown singer named George Strait. On that trip, Strait recorded a demo that laid the initial foundation of his sensational career. Finlay’s friends and fans also include such Texas music fixtures as Todd Snider, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Jack Ingram, James McMurtry, Joe “King” Carrasco, Marcia Ball, Radney Foster, Eric Johnson, Hayes Carll, Omar Dykes (Omar and the Howlers), Terri Hendrix, and Ray Benson (Asleep at the Wheel). These and many others have contributed first-person interviews to this volume, which pays tribute both to Finlay and to his unselfish love for Texas music and musicians.

       

    • Music From The Heart
      An 80th Birthday Tribute to Rod Kennedy

      Music From The Heart Concert PosterSponsored by the Center for Texas Music History and the PSH Foundation
      Tuesday, February 2, 2010
      The Paramount Theatre, Austin Texas

      Featuring Music From: Robert Earl Keen, The Flatlanders, Ray Benson, Marcia Ball, Randy Rogers, Terri Hendrix, Ruthie Foster, Jimmy LaFave, Lloyd Maines, Eliza Gilkyson, Paul Glasse, Brady Black, John Inmon, Bobby Bridger, and more.

       

    • Audrey Najera Scholarship PictureAudrey Najera is from San Antonio and received a B.A. in History as well as Dance from the University of Texas. Najera was awarded the Michael R. Davis Scholarship in 2014 while she was in her last year of graduate studies at Texas State, working towards her M.Ed. in History.

       

    • Kent FinlayIn 2014, Kent Finlay Scholarship Fund officially reached the minimum endowment level. We're very grateful to the Randy Rogers Band, Robert Earl Keen, John and Robin Dickson, and everyone else who contributed so generously to the Finlay Scholarship Fund in support of our Texas State University students. We look forward to continuing to award Kent Finlay scholarships for years to come. Please click here to contribute to the Kent Finlay Endowed Scholarship Fund.

      Kent Finlay opened the doors of Cheatham Street Warehouse in June of 1974 as a music hall, to develop, perpetuate and promote Texas music in its most natural state - the honky-tonk. During the last three decades, Kent has earned quite a track record for developing writers and artists. George Strait, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Charlie and Will Sexton, Randy Rogers, Terri Hendrix, and many more began their notable careers on the Cheatham Street Warehouse stage.

       

    • Progressive Country, Book coverCongratulations to Dr. Jason Mellard, Assistant Director of the Center for Texas Music History, on his new book, Progressive Country: How the 1970s Transformed the Texan in Popular Culture (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2013). Progressive Country received the Coral Horton Tullis Prize for the Best Book in Texas History of 2013 from the Texas State Historical Association. Congratulations!

       

    • The NPR show, Texas Music Matters, of which the Center’s This Week in Texas Music History is a regular feature, won the 2013 International Radio Festivals of New York Award for "Best Regularly Scheduled Music Program," beating out the New York Philharmonic and other nationally-syndicated programs.

      Also, the Austin Chronicle named Austin's NPR affiliate, KUT 90.5 FM, "Best Radio Station of 2013" and specifically mentioned This Week in Texas Music History as one of the programs that helped earn KUT this award.

       

    • Kerville Folk FestivalIn partnership with the nationally recognized Kerrville Folk Festival, the CTMH organized an annual student songwriter competition for six consecutive years. Industry professionals evaluated songs for lyrics, melody and overall construction. The winner had the opportunity to perform alongside name acts at the festival.

      Past Winners: Russell Bisbey (2012) Myles Duelm (2011), Mary Duffey (2010), Victor Holk (2009), Halleyanna Finlay (2008), Jordan Minor (2007), Brenna Maazare (2006)

       

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