Capitol Hill alumni honor former director
A group of seniors who performed in Capitol Hill High School’s acclaimed concert choir in the 1960s and 1970s are recapturing their high school days by honoring the memory of their much-loved director.
Ozzie’s Capitol Hill Alumni Choir pays tribute with each performance to the late Albert C. ‘Ozzie’ Ossenkop, who directed Capitol Hill’s concert choir from 1951 to 1973, said Randy Parsons, alumni choir director.
Parsons said while some members hadn’t sung in a while, they never lost their love of singing.
“When you have been taught by the best, you never forget,” he said.
Ossenkop was a nationally recognized educator, with a career spanning 34 years. He died in 2011 at age 89.
The 40-member alumni choir will complete a series of late summer and fall concerts Dec. 15 at Guthrie’s Territorial Christmas.
The choir, whose members are age 60 and older, will sing at Stockyards City’s Christmas tree lighting ceremony at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 16.
Each Capitol Hill alum once auditioned for Ossenkop’s elite concert choir, Parsons said. All attended the high school south of downtown Oklahoma City from 1963 to 1972, he said.
“We believe we’re the oldest high school choir still in existence,” said Parsons, a 1969 Capitol Hill graduate. ‘Not only the oldest but the best!’
The alumni choir was formed three years ago after having sung informally for reunions, the Capitol Hill Alumni Association and to serenade Ossenkop a year before he died.
Parsons said the choir’s Christmas and patriotic repertoires include pieces Ossenkop’s choirs sang, using some of the same arrangements.
Ossenkop took the choir to places such as the 1964 New York World’s Fair, Expo ‘67 in Montreal, HemisFair ‘68 in San Antonio, and the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado. Parsons said Ossenkop’s choirs also opened the Oklahoma Legislature several times.
Parsons said Ossenkop taught music but also provided his students with perspective as they neared adulthood.
“We learned from him that our friends, our family and our faith would always be the most important things in life,” he said.
Rick Fisher, a 1969 Capitol Hill graduate, said Ossenkop was fatherlike to many students, particularly several who had no father of their own.
“He taught us responsibility and caring,” Fisher said. ‘And if you just needed someone to bend an ear, he was there.’
Ossenkop’s son, Mike, also graduated in 1969 and sang in his father’s concert choir. He said Ossenkop was a great teacher but also helped fatherless students. Mike Ossenkop and his sister, Nicole Ossenkop Carter, sing with the alumni choir.
Cheryl Tolson, 63, who sang in Ossenkop’s final Capitol Hill choir, said that while Ossenkop pushed for excellence, he made everyone feel special. Tolson’s mother, Janice Wilkins, was in Ossenkop’s first Capitol Hill choir.