Past Concerts
Recess Monkey
Mayfest KidZone Family Music Festival
May 21, 2011
Kindergarten teachers by day
and renowned musicians by night,
Recess Monkey’s kid-centric songs evoke ’60s rock classics that captivate crossgenerational audiences.
The Seattle-based trio brings a
fresh sound to children’s music with
science-based lyrics in songs such
as “Constellation Conga” and “Black Hole in My Room.” About.com calls this year’s Family Music Festival headliner “the most prolific and arguably best kids’ band around!”
Sugar Free
Allstars
Mayfest KidZone Family Music Festival
May 21, 2011
With a unique blend
of New Orleans funk,
Memphis soul and organdrenched gospel, the
Oklahoma City-based
Sugar Free Allstars will
infiltrate Tulsa with a high-energy rock and roll performance
that will engage kids and adults alike.
The dynamic duo’s blend of diverse musical instruments
and age-appropriate pop lyrics has gained national
recognition, including a feature in Time magazine. Recent
hit “Bathtub Boy” peaked at No. 1 during its 13 weeks on the
children’s XM radio hit list.
Brady Rymer
Mayfest KidZone Family Music Festival
May 21, 2011
Grammy nominee Brady Rymer’s
down-home country rhythms and
superb songwriting will have kids and
parents toe-tapping to his upbeat music.
A veteran rocker and Brooklyn native,
Rymer has made his mark on children’s
music with his sunny ’70s vibe. Get
ready for imaginative adventures with
the entire family with songs such as “Love Me for Who I Am” and “Picky Eater.”
Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience
March 26, 2011
Creole for Kidz introduces families to the rich history and multi layered sound of Zydeco, the music of the French speaking creoles of southern Louisiana. Zydeco is an important part of America’s musical heritage. It informs Blues and Jazz and can itself be traced back to Native American, African and Caribbean sources. Terrance Simien is a respected musician in this genre and an accomplished educator. His 6 person band has played for over 250,000 students all over Louisiana and as far away as Mali and Paraguay. Terrance Simien's music and voice were recently featured in Disney's new movie The Princess and the Frog.
Secret Agent 23 Skidoo
January 29, 2011
How do you like your Hip Hop- “old school” or “preschool?” Either way, your head’s gonna bob and your booty’s gonna bop when you hear Secret Agent 23 Skidoo lay down his positive beat. It won’t take much for this cool blend of hip-hop, reggae, funk, and bluegrass to get your family dancing at Tulsa Children’s Museum’s second family concert of the season!
The Composer is Dead performed by Tulsa Symphony Orchestra
October 24, 2010
The Composer is Dead is similar to Benjamin Britten’s Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra but with a modern twist. In this musical “Who done it?” children and families are introduced to the instruments of the orchestra as each instrument is questioned as a suspect in the suspicious death of the composer. Did the viola commit the murder as revenge for being forced to play second fiddle to the violin? Where was the tuba on the night in question? What is the oboe’s alibi? Through musical cross examination, the audience has the opportunity to learn more about the instruments in the orchestra and how they work together to create a symphony.
The narration for The Composer Is Dead was written by the award winning children’s author Lemony Snicket (best known for his “A Series of Unfortunate Events” books). The music was composed by Nathaniel Stookey. Since its debut by the San Francisco Symphony in 2006, The Composer is Dead has been played by many well respected Symphonies including the Chicago Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Lunch Money
Mayfest Family Music Festival
May 15, 2010
Lunch Money brings the indie-rock experience to family audiences with an energetic salute to the stuff of childhood: roller coasters, giant cookies and getting dizzy. This trio "artfully treads the line between alt-kids and just plain alternative" [Nick Jr. Family Magazine]. Dizzy, Lunch Money's second album for children, received a glowing review on NPR's "All Things Considered" and was voted the #2 family album of 2009 by a panel of reviewers and radio programmers. Their song "It Only Takes One Night to Make a Balloon Your Friend" reached the #1 spot on XM/Sirius Kids Place Live charts. The band delivers a high-energy show that aims to get children and their parents dancing, thinking and laughing.
Funky Mama
Mayfest Family Music Festival
May 15, 2010
Independent children’s recording artist Krista “Funky Mama” Eyler showcases a voice that kids’ music authority Bill Childs calls “rich, soulful, and bluesy.” Her style is bold, straightforward, funk/soul that’s imbued with a strong sense of narrative phrasing and dynamite energy. A favorite among families in Kansas City, Funky Mama scored national recognition when she performed at the 2007 White House Easter Egg Roll in Washington, D.C. Funky Mama's high energy shows get families dancing, moving, clapping and singing together.
Buffalo Fitz
Mayfest Family Music Festival
May 15, 2010
Buffalofitz is a vibrant acoustic band from Oklahoma City. The versatile duo features the combined energies of Fitz Jennings and Buffalo Rogers, two very different men with a shared love of entertaining, rooted music and storytelling. Their music is an ever-evolving mixture of traditional blues, and ballads, combined with surprising originals and impeccably chosen covers. In 2006 Buffalofitz was awarded a Woody Guthrie Award from the Oklahoma Gazette for Best Folk Band.
Prairie Dawgs
Mayfest Family Music Festival
May 15, 2010
The Prairie Dawgs is an all-acoustic band playing a punchy mix of Americana, Contemporary Folk, Bluegrass, and New Grass styles. Jo Morton's lead vocals, which are reminiscent of Alison Krauss', anchor the band's sound which has a strong emphasis on two- and three-part harmony. The Dawgs decorate many of their songs with Tim Terral's rippin' bluegrass guitar solos and Jim Vincent's blazin' fiddle. Tim Terral and J. Pat Murphy also take their turns singing lead here and there to mix it up a bit. The band counts among its many influences Alison Krauss and Union Station, Patty Griffin, the Greencards, and the New Grass Revival.
Duo Sonics
Mayfest Family Music Festival
May 15, 2010
Tulsa band, Duo Sonics interpret classic blues in an exciting, high-energy show. In fact, band member David Berntson's passion for blues has led him to receive a award for keeping the blues alive in education.
Whether playing a slow blues, dripping with amplified harp and slide guitar, or a full-blown boogie-woogie or jump blues number, this duo can really sing and swing.
Oh, Daddy O! Jazz for the Entire Family
March 27, 2010
If a syncopated beat gets your blood pumping; if you just can’t resist the cool sounds of hot jazz - then the final installment of the Tulsa Children’s Museum’s concert series will be music for your ears. Jambalaya Jass Band heats up the stage as they introduce young and old alike to the elements that makes jazz great and unlike any other musical style: collaborative improvisation. Jazz is known as the music America made.
Red Dirt Rangers
January 30, 2010
Saddle up for a concert with Stillwater's very own Red Dirt Rangers! This six-man country music band draws upon the rich musical history of Oklahoma incorporating elements of Country, Folk, Western Swing, Tex Mex and Jazz to create gritty, close-to-the-earth music.
The Jellydots
September 26, 2009
The Jellydots, an eclectic Rock and Roll band from Austin, Texas, draws inspiration from a wide variety of styles including, Reggae, Pop, Punk and Ska. The group brings insight and sophisticated joy to their quirky inventive songs about essentials of childhood: the disappointment of dropping your cookie, the excitement of racing toy cars or the freedom found on a bicycle. The Jellydots’ clever and inventive lyrics, exquisite attention to musical detail and fascination with the minutiae of childhood make their songs equally accessible to kids and adults.
Tulsa Symphony Orchestra - “Symphonic Safari”
March 28, 2009
Are you ready to bring some classical culture into your kid’s musical genre? Families will be able to go on an animal themed classical music safari as they learn about each segment of the orchestra. Come dressed as your favorite animal – there will be animal face painting before and after the show as well as an instrument petting zoo.
Ralph’s World
January 24, 2009
At the John H. Williams Theatre at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center
Tulsa kids and parents rocked out the PAC this past January with Ralph’s World!
He has been called the Elvis (Presley and Costello) of the children’s musical genre and Ralph Covert and his band have been touring the U.S. to promote their newly released cd, The Rhyming Circus. This Chicago based artist is also a children’s book author and playwright and has won numerous awards for his high-energy melodic tunes that will certainly wear the kids out.
In celebration of pop music, kids got to pop bubbles with our POP! The Art and Science of Bubbles traveling exhibit before and after the show.
Trout Fishing in America show
September 20, 2008
Trout Fishing in America show was a huge success as a SOLD OUT crowd listened to hilarious tunes like their famous song about beadhead “My Hair Had a Party Last Night.”
Families danced together, made beautiful art with our RECLAIM THIS! exhibit and sang catchy tunes to this inaugural show in our Family Concert Series.
More On Trout...
Trout Fishing in America is comprised of the dynamic duo from Arkansas, Keith Grimwood and Ezra Islet. They have been writing, recording and performing together for over three decades.
They met and first played together in Houston in the folk/rock band St Elmo’s Fire, which dissolved in 1979. A decade later in 1990, they recorded Truth is Stranger than Fishin' for their own label, Trout Records.
They still release their own CD's, including their most recent Big Round World, (2008), and their three Grammy nominated children's releases, My Best Day (2006), Merry Fishes to All (2004) and inFINity (2001) on Trout Records and have earned multiple national awards.
Trout Fishing in America's album sales have passed the quarter of a million mark, an impressive feat for a group with no MTV exposure or Top 40 hits. Instead, they have played large and small venues across North America and even a couple of trips to Europe, picking up fans young and old on each swing.
Much of their songs were created in song workshops that they conduct throughout the country.
