Roy McCoy (1920-2001) was a jazz trumpeter from Baltimore who performed with such ensembles as the house band of the Royal Theater and the Lionel Hampton Band in the late 1930s and 1940s. McCoy took many pictures of his friends and associates in the Baltimore musical scene. The McCoy photographs collection contains prints, negatives, and a photo album of musicians and associates, primarily from approximately 1935 to 1965.

Sounds and Stories began in 2002 as an oral-history project. A Peabody Conservatory musicology seminar of 18 students interviewed dozens of participants in the music of Baltimore's black community to record their memories and to document their world and their legacy. The collection was assembled primarily from 1998 to 2004 and contains oral histories, photographs, and supporting research about African-American musical culture, especially in Baltimore from approximately 1930 to 1960.

William A. Chrystal was a pianist, composer, arranger, and conductor based in the Pittsburgh area for most of his career. He attended the Peabody Conservatory in the 1950s and earned degrees in piano performance. The William A. Chrystal papers contain music manuscripts, programs, clippings, professional documents, and sound recordings.