Marr Sound Archives

Marr Sound Archives
Marr Sound Archives
	Interactive map of Marr Sound Archives
	39°2′6.1″N 94°34′35.5″W / 39.035028°N 94.576528°W
Location	800 E 51st Street, Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Established	1987
Affiliation	Miller Nichols Library
Website	library.umkc.edu/sca/marr/

The Marr Sound Archives is an audiovisual archive, affiliated with the University of Missouri-Kansas City. The Marr Sound Archives is one of four departments comprising the Special Collections and Archives division housed at the Miller Nichols Library.

The collection includes extensive holdings of jazz, blues, country and popular music; historic voices and authors reading their own works; vintage radio programs; classical and opera. The Marr Sound Archives holds a wide range of historic formats including LPs, 78s, 45s, cylinders, transcription discs, instantaneous-cut discs, compact cassette tapes, and open-reel audiotapes. The archives maintain audiovisual materials for a number of archival collections shared with LaBudde Special Collections and The UMKC University Archives.

The archives were created from a donation of 42,000 items by Olga and Gaylord Marr in 1987. As of 2023, the archives hold over 400,000 recordings.

References

1 2 3 Komara, E.; Lee, P. (2004). The Blues Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. p. 605. ISBN 978-1-135-95831-2. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
1 2 Becker, Becky Briggs. "Research Guides: UMKC University History: Home". libguides.library.umkc.edu. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
↑ Sturman, J. (2019). The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture. SAGE Publications. p. 4170. ISBN 978-1-5063-5337-1. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
↑ "Marr Sound Archives". UMKC University Libraries. 10 November 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2024.

Trivia

The Marr Sound Archives was used as a filming location for the Hallmark movie A Grand Ole Opry Christmas.
The Marr Sound Archives contributed original audio recordings of Charlie Parker to "Bird in Kansas City," from Verve Records.

External links

Marr Sound Archives Official website

39°02′04″N 94°34′37″W / 39.034576°N 94.57688°W / 39.034576; -94.57688

↑ "Happy Holidays from the UMKC Libraries". Library News. December 15, 2025. Retrieved March 15, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
↑ West, Kaitlin (November 5, 2024). "UMKC Marr Sound Archives Contribute to New Charlie Parker Album". UMKC Today. Retrieved March 15, 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

[Komara_Lee_2004_p._605-1] 1 2 3 Komara, E.; Lee, P. (2004). The Blues Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. p. 605. ISBN 978-1-135-95831-2. Retrieved 19 January 2024.

[:0-2] 1 2 Becker, Becky Briggs. "Research Guides: UMKC University History: Home". libguides.library.umkc.edu. Retrieved 2026-03-16.

[Sturman_2019_p._4170-3] Sturman, J. (2019). The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture. SAGE Publications. p. 4170. ISBN 978-1-5063-5337-1. Retrieved 19 January 2024.

[UMKC_University_Libraries_2023_k555-4] "Marr Sound Archives". UMKC University Libraries. 10 November 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2024.

[5] "Happy Holidays from the UMKC Libraries". Library News. December 15, 2025. Retrieved March 15, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

[6] West, Kaitlin (November 5, 2024). "UMKC Marr Sound Archives Contribute to New Charlie Parker Album". UMKC Today. Retrieved March 15, 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)