The streets of Oswego were lined with local musicians and hundreds of listeners during the seventh annual Porchfest celebration on Sept. 18. A total of 44 different acts played in front of the porches of Oswego homes from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the historic Westside district.

Porchfest is a product of the Oswego Renaissance Association, a non-profit organization which funds renovation projects including the Oswego Paint Program. The music festival was founded by Gerri Millar, who was inspired by a similar festival of the same name in Ithaca.

A walk through the streets immersed a listener into the sounds of many different local artists. Some were in such proximity to each other that their music would sonically blend together. The live setting for these acts were accompanied by the ambience of foot traffic and a brief fire truck siren. 

One of the first acts of the day was guitarist and retired math professor Winfield Ihlow, who sang folk tunes from a small green porch. Ihlow, a newbie to the open air music scene, began his set when the belltower of St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church chimed for noon. 

“The bell says it’s time,” Ihlow said. “I get to inaugurate Porchfest.”

Ihlow’s voice is self-described as “[making] Tom Waits sound like a songbird.” Ihlow,  like many performers that day, had a simple set-up of a guitar and a Fender amp, though his act was special given his uniquely monotone voice. He sang tunes ranging from obscure, modern artists such as Chris Smithers and Eliza Gilkyson, as well as classics from Steve Goodman and Richard Thompson of Fairport Convention. Ihlow sang two songs from Woody Guthrie, including the popular anthem “This Land is Your Land.” He referred to Guthrie as “the great socialist troubadour” and wore a shirt bearing the words Guthrie placed on his guitar, “This Machine Kills Fascists.”

Oswego native Hal Sussman was impressed by the festival. “It’s fun, it’s grown, it’s got so much bigger,” Sussman said. His only complaint was of the magnitude of the lineup. “[There’s] Almost too many artists. You want to hear people but you can only spend a few minutes if you want to catch [another act].”

Sussman suggested the Jimi Marley Project, a reggae-blues band led by three-time Grammy nominee Frank Stepanek. The name of the band is an amalgamation of rock legends Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley, an ode to the stylistic inspirations toward the band’s music. 

“Reggae is the people’s music,” Oswego alumnus and drummer Saint Matthew Romano said, “Like the news.” The band opened with “Solidarity,” a song from the reggae band Black Uhuru, for which Stepanek was a member.

While most of the acts at Porchfest were grounded in folk and blues, the ten-piece Alphorn Society was an eclectic outlier. Dressed in traditional Swiss milking shirts, the troupe played 13.5 foot long Swiss alphorns in harmony. Music director Andy Fischer enjoys the warm reception to traditional Swiss music in a modern setting.

“People really enjoy it when you play it,” Fischer said. “They don’t know it. It’s not something in the front of their minds but when you play it, they think about it.”

From a stand next to Franklin Square, promotional director Steven Phillips sold T-shirts with the Porchfest logo he designed himself. 

“[The stand] is the main fundraiser that we do to help underwrite the costs of the event,” Phillips said. “Because it actually costs about five thousand dollars to put on this free event between the insurance, the fees from the city, advertising.” 

The preparation for Porchfest is a long process spanning six months, although Phillips says the penultimate 90 days is when it is crunch time. 

Photo via Evan Youngs