South City Folk Jam
The South City Folk Jam is a gathering of musicians of all skill levels who meet once a month to have fun playing traditional and contemporary folk music together.
Come join the band!
Next Folk Jam is Saturday, April 12th
3 - 5 pm
South City Park & Rec Building
901 Civic Campus Way
Room 235 (2nd floor)
$6 drop-in fee (cash only please!)
It's about people and music...
The South City Folk Jam is a gathering of friendly people from all walks of life who enjoy playing music together. We aim for our monthly events to be relaxed and
welcoming to all, but we're also serious about having fun playing music. We are here to jam and bond together through the banging of strings and raising our voices!
What kind of music do we play?
We use the term "folk music" in a generous way that includes everything from old-timey songs (think O Brother, Where Art Thou) to "Folk Revival" anthems from the 50's and 60's (think Peter, Paul and Mary), to popular folk, rock, and country hits from the 60's through the 2000's. What they all have in common is they are easy to play and seem to work well in a group sing-along.
Do I Need to Know
How to Read Music?
No! When you arrive, you'll be handed a songbook that includes a large variety of well-known songs that are all large-print lyric sheets with only the chords written above each line. As long as you know your basic chords (G, C, D, E, em, A, am, B7, bm, F), you'll be able to play easily though 90% of our songs. Here's an example of one song
Look for the sign
Folk Jam Winter Dates
April 12th
May 10th
3-5 pm
South City Parks & Rec
901 Civic Campus Way, SSF
Room 235 (2nd floor)
$6 drop-in fee (cash only)
How do I sign up to attend the next folk jam?
(Just a note... it's not required to RSVP through Meet-Up for the folk jam but it is helpful for me when people do. Thanks!)
The best way to RSVP for the South City Folk Jam is through the MeetUp App which is a free app you can download onto your phone or computer. Here's the link to our page on MeetUp...
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https://www.meetup.com/south-san-francisco-folk-jam/
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Creating an account on MeetUp is free and a really cool platform to discover other groups near where you live who share common hobbies or interests. Check it out!
A Little About the Organizer of the South City Folk Jam...
Mark grew up in San Bruno, CA but has called South San Francisco his home for the last 23 years where he lives with his wife, their teenage son, and Keiko-- their sweet rescue pup.
Mark picked up the guitar at age 14, taught himself how to play and has been jamming and singing ever since (nearly 40 years!). He's been a teacher of guitar at the SSF Parks & Rec and Bronstein's Music in the past, and has lots of experience leading group singing at Good News Chapel in South City where he serves as a pastor and music leader.
Recently Mark purchased his "dream car"-- a 1972 VW Westfalia Bus-- which needs a lot of work but he's excited to learn how to restore it and take it on as a father/son project.
The reason why Mark started the South City Folk Jam is because he believes in the power of music to bring people together. We live in such a busy and isolating culture-- especially since the pandemic-- and the folk jam is a way to connect with real people in a really fun way.