“Hillcrest Ensemble” will perform “The Great American Songbook” at the upcoming Full Moon Concert Friday, Sept. 13 in Tonkawa Centennial Park, 301 East Grand in Tonkawa. Eight area musicians will present American Standards – including classics such as Blue Moon, Heart and Soul, Sentimental Journey, Georgia on my Mind, All of Me, In the Mood, On the Sunny Side of the Street and more popular favorites. Come enjoy Tonkawa’s Full Moon Concert and hum along to tunes that have lasted the test of time!
Members of the Hillcrest Ensemble are Denise Jones, clarinet; Paul Parma, bass; Kevin Roe, tenor saxophone; Larry Lenhart, guitar; Suzi Lenhart, vocals; Mary Jane Barraclough, soprano; Mike Seals, jazz piano and Don Long, drums.
Denise Jones received her BFA degree in Music Education from Wichita State University and taught band for two years in Wichita and twenty-six years in Ponca City. She played bassoon with the Mariah Trio and with various local groups, and serves on Arts Adventure Foundation board of directors. Denise and her husband Stan reside in Ponca City.
Paul Parma received his Bachelor’s degree in Music from University of Tulsa and his Master’s degree in Music from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Paul is currently teaching Guitar at Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa.
Kevin Roe grew up in Muskogee and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Music from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. Along with performing the tenor saxophone and bass, Kevin is a retired firefighter, and works as a 911 dispatcher in Ponca City. He married his high school sweetheart 44 years ago and lives in Newkirk.
Larry Lenhart, a Ponca City native, earned his Master of Science in Education from Arizona State University and retired from teaching math at Ponca City High School. Larry took guitar lessons and taught at Bill Pruitt’s Music Studio in Ponca City in the 1960s, and has played early rock & roll and country music in various bands over the years.
Suzi Lenhart is a vocal, recorder and piano instructor and has been teaching in her Ponca City studio for 37 years. Prior to that, she taught public school music in Arizona and Wisconsin. She holds both Bachelor and Master degrees in Music Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Suzi and Larry Lenhart have been married 44 years.
Mary Jane Barraclough is a graduate of the University of Missouri’s Conservatory of Music in Kansas City. She is well known for her musical and theatrical talents ...
