Biography

Donald Ryan – Classical, Religious & Jazz Pianist

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Donald Ryan

A commanding and dynamic pianist, Donald Ryan has been called “a music kaleidoscope, sparkling at everything he plays.” This “everything” encompasses the arenas of classical, religious/inspirational, and jazz. His virtuosity and amazing gift of improvisation have delighted audiences throughout the U. S. A.  – Carnegie Hall included – as well as in England, France, Germany, Austria, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, the Caribbean … Read more

Washington Rucker – Biography & Career

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Washington Rucker

1998 Inductee Washington Irving Rucker was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma on March 5th, 1937, and attended local schools through to graduation from Booker T. Washington High, developing a talent for the drums along the way. By his teens, Washington was working with bluesman Jimmy “Cry Cry” Hawkins and was soon off to UCLA to study and get … Read more

Justin Echols – New Orleans Jazz Club

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Justin Echols

Inducted into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame in 2012, police officer Justin Echolscroons the standards with a voice as smooth as melted chocolate and manipulates the ebonies and ivories as if he were born in a New Orleans jazz club. When Echols was faced with near immobility after a catastrophic car crash, the Oklahoma City police sergeant … Read more

Ernestine Dillard – Award-Winning Singer Bio

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Ernestine Dillard

Ernestine Dillard, from Bixby, is perhaps best remembered for her April 23, 1995 performance, when she electrified 11,000 mourners and a national television audience with her “God Bless America” medley that closed the Oklahoma City Memorial Service for the victims of the Murrah Building bombing. In 1994, she ended a 33-year career as a registered nurse, the last … Read more

Steve Wilkerson – Tenor Sax Musician

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Steve Wilkerson Jazz Sax

Steve Wilkerson began his professional career at age 11, in Ramona, Oklahoma, when he joined his father’s dance band. He attended the University of Tulsa and played saxophone for their jazz ensemble. He completed a bachelor’s Degree in classical clarinet and won the Downbeat Combo Award. After graduation, he toured with the Stan Kenton Orchestra … Read more

Wallace Willis – Biography & Music

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Uncle Wallace Willis

Uncle Wallace Willis (sometimes Wallis Willis) was a Choctaw freedman living in the Indian Territory. He is credited with composing several Negro spirituals. Willis received his name from his owner, Britt Willis, probably in Mississippi, the ancestral home of the Choctaws. He died, probably in what is now Atoka County, Oklahoma, as his unmarked grave … Read more