News and Events

2024 News and Events

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

Join us for a conversation with Bevis M. GriffinBevis slider 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 will be joined in conversation by Texas writer Gene Fowler.

The West Side Sound Oral History Project | Sylvia Mendoza & Gloria Gonzalez
Monday, February 19, 2024 | 12:30 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

West Side Sound flyer

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.

For more information, visit our West Side Sound event page.

2023 News and Events

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

Today the Smithsonian Institution recognizes popularTroutman flyer 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.

Book Talk: Texas Jazz Singer: Louise Tobin in the Golden Age of Swing and Beyond | Kevin Mooney
Wednesday, October 18, 2023 | 3:30 PM | Brazos Hall Lobby

Based on extensive oral history interviews and archivalTexas Jazz Singer slider research, Texas Jazz Singer recalls both the glamour and the challenges of life on the road and onstage during the golden age of swing and beyond. It focuses on the life of Louise Tobin, who sang with Benny Goodman and also performed vocals for renowned musicians such as Will Bradley, Bobby Hackett, Harry James (who was her first husband), Johnny Mercer, Lionel Hampton, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Peanuts Hucko (who was her second husband), and Fletcher Henderson.

As it traces American music through the twentieth century, the story of Louise Tobin provides insight into the challenges musicians faced to sustain their careers during the cultural revolution and ever-changing styles and tastes in music. During this presentation, author Kevin Mooney, a professor in the School of Music at Texas State University, will offer a new perspective on Louise Tobin and her impact on jazz music.

To learn more and register for this event, visit our Texas Jazz Singer event page.

Architects of Sound: Women of El Paso Punk | 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.

To learn more and watch the recording of the event, visit our Architects of Sound event page.

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 Lobby

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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