Exciting String Trio Performs for Ponca City Concert Series

Once again Ponca City Concert Series members were treated to a talented ensemble of musicians when the Sultans of Strings appeared on stage at the Poncan Theater the first day of Spring. The trio consisted of two guitarists, Drew Birston and Kevin Laliberte, and one violinist, Chris McKhool. They certainly were equally masters of their instruments and lived up to their billing that they would bring a unique blend of global music to their audiences The Canadian trio from Toronto presented a tapestry of music including Spanish Falmenco, Cuban rhythm, jazz, and even music from Nova Scotia and Ireland, which all added a great deal of variety. To add to the enjoyment of the music, there were pictures being shown on the large screen at the back of the stage which correlated with and enhanced the pleasure of the selections . My favorite portions of video were the wild horses from Nova Scotia shown during “Sable Island” and the whales with “Luna the Whale”.

N o one could really critique such a talented trio who seemed to have an amazing rapport as they bantered back and forth with playful dialogue between numbers. My only criticism would be that I would have enjoyed a few more selections that were familiar. The program stated that you would want to get up and dance with the selections, and while not being able to dance now, I was not tempted to do this . I certainly was tempted to sing along with “Blowin’ In the Wind” when it was played and very pleased that we were all invited to sing along.

Two of the selections were written about actual people and the song titled ‘’Josie” was especially meaningful as it was about a woman teacher whom the violinist was amazed to find out was blind even after he had spent a great deal of time with her and did not realize she wasn’t sighted. The other number about a specific person was one written as a love song to the “gal” of the bass guitarist with the title of “Sweet” (with her name which I could not catch) We were asked to sing along with doodle dee doo or la de dah (perhaps as the spirit moved) and that was a lot of fun and brought about good audience participation.

The number “Kitchen” Party showcased each of the individual musicians and as I mentioned before, they were all equally adept in their respective instruments. I was especially impressed with the guitarists playing a “silent guitar” (silent unless “plugged” in) because he later was asked to give an example of any kind of music thrown out to play and he nailed each kind with perfection.

Space does not permit commenting on each selection but suffice it to sa y there was something for everyone included in this fast paced, never boring, program . It was evidenced in their complimenting the beauty of the Poncan Theater not once, but twice, that they were pleased to be in Ponca City and really gave us their all as they performed. The Ponca Concert Series winds up this season with an April 20 Fifties gala evening which promises to be a fun evening of activities and music, plus it is the bonus concert for new members purchasing tickets for next year.