MOUNT VERNON – Sally Berger played guitar, but it was a solo pursuit.
It was in 2016 when she came across the national organization SongFarmers of America, which was having a gathering in Kentucky with emi-pro musicians who loved folk music. SongFarmers’ mission is to gather like-minded musicians on the porch and jam.
That’s what people did for entertainment, Berger said.
“That’s how you knew your neighbor — their mission was to create a front porch around the world.”
Berger and her husband, Jim Harder, who plays banjo, went to Kentucky to see what SongFarmers was all about.
While in Kentucky, Berger was introduced to SongFarmers implementing local chapters throughout the country. She decided to take the mantle and start a chapter in Mount Vernon.
How SongFarmers regrouped after the pandemic
Mount Vernon’s chapter of SongFarmers hit the ground running in May 2017 on Berger’s porch. Then it moved to Experience Mount Vernon’s office on South Main Street in 2019.
String players, guitarists, banjos players, fiddlers and drummers joined in the empty room.
SongFarmers eventually outgrew the space, Berger said, thereafter meeting at the Woodward Opera House starting in February 2020.
Anyone is welcome to join SongFarmers, Berger said, with the group playing at everyone’s skill level.
And then Covid hit.
SongFarmers regathered in July 2021 at Faith Lutheran Church where the Bergers worship.
“We’ve noticed that we used to go and do things without even hardly thinking about it. After Covid, it’s almost hard to get back. I don’t know what it is.
sally berger
“We started meeting outside because you still had to be careful and spread out. And that year SongFarmers was revived,” Berger said.
A new SongFarmers meeting location is in the works, Berger said, while SongFarmers continues to meet at Faith Lutheran Church.
“Prior to Covid-19, we would have usually about 25 people once a month,” Berger said. “We were just tickled to death ’cause it was just grassroots. It was word of mouth.
“But since Covid, we still have a solid crew that’s around 10 people. I think it’s just a matter of time and building back up.”
A byproduct of SongFarmers is the camaraderie from playing music — finding talent in every musician throughout “our little neck of the woods,” Berger said.
How music connects
Berger continued to grow excited because SongFarmers became about people just enjoying music.
“There’s just something about music that connects people differently,” Berger said. “You forget about your differences. I can’t imagine my life without it. It’s a deep feeling that’s near impossible to put into words. Music, it’s like a universal language.
“You can convey so much in music, you know, a range of emotions. It’s soul-affirming. It’s healing. You can be sad and blue and listen to a sad song but somehow feel better by the end.
“It’s almost like our first language.”
There’s just something about music that connects people differently. You forget about your differences. I can’t imagine my life without it
Sally berger