In the 1990’s, an organization called the Oregon Music Coalition was formed, electing an Oregon Music Hall of Fame consisting of approximately 50 Oregon bands and individual musicians. Over the years, the Oregon Music Coalition lost steam and eventually disbanded. In 2003, a group of people, Terry Currier, Janeen Rundle, Ford Pearson, Buck Munger, E Helz, and Kevin Anspauch,
dedicated to the music scene in Oregon became committed to revitalizing the slumbering Oregon Music Hall of Fame, forming a non-profit corporation using the Oregon Music Hall of Fame moniker. OMHOF will continue to recognize all the former artist inductees and, once a year, will elect new inductees into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame based on several criteria including their contributions to music in Oregon as well as their impact on music around the world. Nominees will include musicians, producers, radio disc jockeys, promoters, and others. Our long-term goal is to have an actual Oregon Music Hall of Fame building that will house displays of memorabilia and music exhibits, as well as host music education seminars. A Board of Directors, containing a dynamic mix of musicians, artists, marketing experts, business people, and music industry insiders, guides OMHOF. This volunteer board has given a great deal of their time to re-launch OMHOF, and they continue to push the organization into new directions, past the original guidelines of the Oregon Music Coalition. While honoring Oregon’s musical heritage is an important aspect of OMHOF, we are also interested in developing Oregon’s talent of today and tomorrow. OMHOF introduces Oregon audiences to the State’s hottest new bands and solo acts by hosting periodic Emerging Artist Showcases. These showcases will encompass all musical genres, from rock, blues, and country, to jazz, classical, and folk. Our first Emerging Artist Showcase was held at the Crystal Ballroom on Friday, March 18, 2005. This concert featured Justin Hopkins, Scott Fisher, and Dr. Theopolis, and it was attended by almost 500 people. Tickets to these showcases are inexpensive (under $10) yet they offer hours of musical entertainment featuring several different acts. They are the perfect venue to present Oregon’s up-and-coming musical acts to a broader audience. OMHOF will also take an active part in promoting musical education in Oregon schools. We will offer scholarship money to selected Oregon high school seniors who are continuing their musical studies in college. We will also do our part to raise money in order to help Oregon grade and
middle schools continue their music programs which are, sadly, being slowly discontinued due to budget cuts. All of these important goals will be funded by OMHOF dues, fundraisers, grants, donations, our Emerging Artist Showcases, and various OMHOF promoted concerts. You can get on the bandwagon and make a sound investment for Oregon. You can join OMHOF for only $30.00. Sign up as a volunteer and help us keep Oregon music alive.
