Touring artist shows
Tuesday through Saturday, seated, one opener, sets usually run 8pm to 10pm.
A listening room, on purpose
220 seats and a room that stays quiet
We ask people not to talk during the set and we mean it. Songwriters keep coming back because you can hear a whisper from the back wall.
220seated capacity
6nights a week
2011opened on 11th St
100%of the door to the artist
Nights and tickets
Six nights, four kinds of show
Ticket prices are set by the artist. The bar and the kitchen keep the lights on.
Songwriter round
Sunday nights, three writers trading songs in the round, a Tulsa fixture since 2013.
Wednesday jazz residency
A rotating quartet holds the Wednesday slot for a month at a time, two sets.
Open mic
First Tuesday of the month, sign up at 6:30pm, eight minutes or two songs each.
Private event rental
The room, bar and house sound for four hours, seating for 220 or standing for 300.
Recording and live capture
Multitrack capture off the house board for artists who want the night documented.
About the room
An old tin ceiling and a strict quiet policy
The Tin Sparrow opened in 2011 in a 1920s storefront on 11th Street with the original pressed tin ceiling intact, which turned out to be part of why the room sounds the way it does. We give 100 percent of the door to the artist and make our money at the bar. Staff will politely ask talkers to move to the back bar, and if that does not work, to leave.
•Every dollar at the door goes to the artist
•Talking during a set gets you asked to move, then asked to leave
•House engineer and backline included for every booked act
Reviews
From artists and audiences
“I have played 200 rooms this year and maybe four where the audience was actually listening. This is one of them.”
Cody R., Touring songwriter
“The quiet policy sounds pretentious until you sit through a show. Then you resent every other venue.”
Fatima H., Regular since 2017
“Booked it for a fiftieth birthday with a live trio. The staff ran it better than any event space we looked at.”
Rick and Doreen S., Private rental
FAQ
Before the show
Is seating assigned?
Only for shows marked reserved on the calendar, which is about a third of them. The rest are general admission seating, first come, and the doors open an hour before the set. Arriving 30 minutes early gets you a good seat on almost any night.
How strict is the no talking policy?
Quite strict, and it is the reason artists route through Tulsa for us. Between songs and between sets, talk all you want. During a song, staff will quietly ask you to take the conversation to the back bar. Repeat it and we will refund your ticket and walk you out.
Is there food?
A short kitchen menu of flatbreads, a cheese board and two sandwiches, served from doors until the set starts and again between sets. We stop food service during the music so plates and forks stay out of the recording.
How do artists get booked?
Email the booking address with recorded music, routing dates and any Tulsa draw history. We book three to five months out and take a lot of first time acts on the Sunday round. We pay 100 percent of the door and provide sound, backline and a green room.
Contact
Tickets, bookings and rentals
The calendar is the fastest way to see what is coming. Booking and private rental questions go to separate inboxes and get answered within a week.
Phone(543) 555-0143
Address1216 E 11th St, Tulsa, OK 74120, Tulsa, Oklahoma
HoursDoors 7pm Tue to Sun, bar until midnight, closed Monday
AreaTulsa, Broken Arrow, Bixby, Owasso, Sand Springs