Austin Music Scene, Austin Music Stores And Austin Musicians

Austin Music Foundation (AMF) is a non-profit started by two long-time Austin music fans with the goal of uniting the Austin music scene with information, mixers and the Austin Industry Music Boot Camps, a free educational seminar series which includes panel discussions and audience questions and answers. Research papers or handbooks on music related topics are distributed at most Austin Music Industry Boot Camps and handbooks from past Boot Camps can be obtained through the Austin Music Foundation website. The Austin Music Foundation provides Austin musicians with information on how to navigate a career in Austin music scene including promotion, marketing and general business aspects of the music industry. Austin Music Foundation’s programs are free to attend and open to the public.

Austin, Texas-based musician and artist Bob Schneider has won more than 24 Austin Music Awards including Band of the Year; Musician of the Year; Song of the Year for "40 Dogs (Like Romeo And Juliet)"; Album of the Year for “Lovely Creatures”; Male Vocalist of the Year; and Songwriter of the Year. Besides appearing on the soundtracks of a number of movies and making national television appearances, Bob Schneider maintains a vigorous touring schedule while still appearing regularly in Austin live music venues including a regular gig at The Saxon Pub.

Born in Michigan, and raised in Munich, Germany, Bob Schneider dropped out of the University of Texas at El Paso in the early 1990's and moved to Austin where he started his first band, Joe Rockhead. Joe Rockhead released three albums. Bob Schneider went on to front The Ugly Americans and The Scabs, which became well known in Austin, particulary for playing at live music venue Antones, and become solid touring bands.

In 1999, Bob Schneider began to perform as a solo act under the name Lonelyland. Lonelyland was later dropped by Bob Schneider as a band name, but became the title of his first major record album release and has been followed by a string of album releases and hit songs.

Bob Schneider is also known for having at one time dated the actress Sandra Bullock, who also maintains a home in Austin. Bob Schneider's songs have appeared on a number of film soundtracks including "Miss Congeniality," "Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back," "40 Days & 40 Nights," and "Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood."

Bob Schneider tours frequently across the United States, but regularly appears in Austin at smaller venues. His Austin shows include a long standing Monday night solo residency at the Saxon Pub as well as Antone's where he appears both his band and The Scabs.

Almost all of Bob Schneider's live shows are recorded and sold to his audiences after the performances. These recordings are released under the label "Frunk" and are usually available for download on his website. Bob Schneider appearances and tour dates are also available on his website. His most recent release is “A Perfect Day.”

The Paramount Theatre is a classical revival style movie and live theatre built in 1915 located in downtown Austin. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the Paramount been home to vaudeville, silent movies and "talkies," music, dance, and Broadway shows for almost 100 years and the performers that have appeared there include Houdini, the Marx Brothers, Helen Hayes, Orson Welles, Sarah Bernhardt, the Ziegfeld Follies, the Metropolitan Opera, Lillian Russell, John Philip Sousa, the Barrymores, Lillian Gish, and George M. Cohan to such modern-day favorites as Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Sarah Vaughan, Lyle Lovett, Gregory Hines, and Mandy Patinkin. The Paramount currently operates along side the State Theatre next door under The Austin Theatre Alliance, anon-profit organization strives to bring the widest variety of entertainment to as many people as possible in its two historic theatres. The Paramount presents comedy, drama, music, dance, spoken word, children’s programming and films including it's classic summer film series and is home to Austin’s red carpet film premieres and is an integral part of SXSW and the Austin Film Festival. 

School of Rock offers guitar, drum, keyboard, bass guitar and vocal lessons for kids from 2nd grade through high school.

The South Austin Popular Culture Center is located behind the Planet K on South Lamar just south of the Zilker Park and Barton Springs area. Presided over by Henry Gonzales, whose paintings and murals graced the walls of the famous Austin landmark music venue of the 1970's the Armadillo World Headquarters, the museum presents art shows, exhibits, and music events related to Austin art and culture of the past 50 years. Formerly known as the South Austin Museum Of Popular Culture and founded in 2004, most of the original board of organizers for the museum were in some way connected either as employees, poster artists or musicians at the Armadillo World Headquarters, which was in an old Quonset hut located on Barton Springs and South First behind the current location of Threadgill's South. The South Austin Popular Culture Center not only showcases artists of the pasts, but also current Austin artists. Over 40 exhibitions have been presented at the Museum featuring work by Austin artists and painters such as cartoonists Jack Jaxon and Gilbert Shelton, photographer Allan Pogue, poster and visual artists Michael Priest, Bill Narum, Guy Juke, Henry Gonzalez, Danny Garrett, Kerry Awn, Powell St. John, Jesse Taylor, Bob Daddy-O Wade and the originator of the icon Armadillo images associated with the "cosmic cowboy" era of Austin in the sixties and seventies, Jim Franklin. There is also a memorial wall that spans the length of the property that honors deceased artists, writers and performers, philanthropists and others who have been important to Austin’s culture. The launch of almost all exhibits is paired with an opening party with live music on the outdoor stage in the back parking lot that starts at the magical time of 7:09 PM.

The Texas Music Office is part of the Office of the Governor of Texas and promotes and provides information on musicians and music related businesses in Texas. The Texas Music Office maintains an online and published directory on the Texas music scene with approximately 16,000 listings totaling over 3000 printed pages including 7,300 Texas music businesses in 96 music business categories, Texas music events, Texas talent, Texas recording artists and Texas radio stations. The Texas Music Office also assists Texas musicians with individual projects and is liaison to worldwide press inquiries. The Texas music office was established in 1990 and was the first state agency created in the United States to promote the commercial music business. Since then, more than a dozen cities and states have created similar offices. Casey Monahan, a music journalist with the Austin American-Statesman at the time, was appointed the first director of the Texas Music Office and has remained the director through four Texas gubernatorial administrations.