PORCHFEST

I absolutely adored Porchfest! I thought it was the coolest event, it was absolutely amazing to see everyone come together to hear the music. I didn't pay too much to all of the technicalities of the music they were playing, I was so wrapped up in the magic of it all.
One of the songs I did pay special attention to was played by the first porch we stopped at. I didn't catch the name of the performers, but the song that struck me was about life in the town of Ithaca. The singer speaks about how, when he first moved to Ithaca, he constantly thought of his hometown and his "heart just wasn't in it." He then goes onto say that, since he's been living in Ithaca for almost thirty years, "this ol' town is now my home." I'm pretty sure the song was in AABA form, with the B being a saxophone solo near the end. Throughout the song, there's repetition of "woahooo," with bursts of the saxophone marking the transitions from one phrase to the next. The beginning lyrics describe the singer being lost when he first came to Ithaca. Then, during the chorus, the lyrics described how Ithaca has become the singer's home, in which the saxophone plays almost constantly, contrasting the first verse when the saxophone hardly played. The addition of the saxophone during the chorus made the chorus sound much livelier than the first verse, reflecting how the lyrics describe the singer as feeling at home during the chorus.
I thought it was amazing to see the lesson we learned in class about folk music
creating a sense of community demonstrated in real life. Not only did the groups of people surrounding the local bands demonstrate that community, but this song about Ithaca put the cherry on top of the close- knit, community vibe of the day.
I can't wait to go back next year!!