Statewide music-history collection
Venues, Radio, Recording and Music Industry
This collection is still growing. It presents documented Oklahoma evidence now available in the archive and identifies important gaps without filling them by assumption.
About this history
This collection documents places and systems through which Oklahoma music was performed, broadcast, recorded, promoted, taught, organized, and circulated: auditoriums, ballrooms, theaters, schools, clubs, radio stations, studios, record labels, newspapers, civic organizations, festivals, and touring networks.
Documented places and systems
- Ritz Ballroom, Oklahoma City — institutional base associated with the Oklahoma City Blue Devils.
- Vocalion recording activity — Blue Devils 1929 session; Ernie Fields “T-Town Blues” in 1939.
- Savoy Ballroom, New York — important Ernie Fields touring history; should be represented as out-of-state touring context, not an Oklahoma venue.
- Municipal Auditorium, Oklahoma City — Oklahoma Symphony moved there in 1938; connection between public-works infrastructure and public music.
- Tulsa / Skelly Stadium — 1931 National High School Band Contest venue context.
- Hyechka and civic/institutional performance networks in Tulsa.
- Oklahoma A&M/OSU, University of Oklahoma, University of Tulsa, Langston, Muskogee institutions, and other educational systems as long-term music infrastructure.
- Radio and broadcasts appear repeatedly in Federal Music Project, Ernie Fields, school/community, and professional-music records, but a statewide station-by-station chronology has not yet been reconstructed.
What remains to be documented
- Cain's Ballroom and Tulsa western-swing / country / rock history.
- Greenwood clubs, theaters, churches, dance halls, and performance spaces.
- Oklahoma City Black entertainment venues beyond the Ritz Ballroom.
- WKY, KVOO, college radio, and other station histories.
- Recording studios, labels, producers, engineers, record stores, and pressing/distribution systems.
- Festival and fair infrastructure beyond band-specific records.
- Touring routes, booking agencies, promoters, unions, and hotel/ballroom circuits.
How records are distinguished
- A venue appearance does not make an artist Oklahoma-based.
- A radio broadcast does not establish employment or station affiliation unless the source says so.
- A recording made for a national label should preserve label, session, date, and location separately.
- Buildings, organizations, promoters, and recurring event series should be separate records linked by relationships, not collapsed into a single venue history.
Current coverage
Documented now
- Ritz Ballroom / Blue Devils relationship.
- Vocalion sessions already verified for Blue Devils and Ernie Fields.
- Oklahoma City Municipal Auditorium / Oklahoma Symphony 1938 context.
- 1931 Tulsa national band contest venue context.
Still incomplete
- Statewide radio history.
- Cain's Ballroom and commercial venue networks.
- Greenwood venue history.
- Recording-studio and label history.
- Promoters, unions, touring circuits, and record retail.