Sharon Hennessy: A force of nature unleashed!
Sharon Hennessy is hard-wired to be goal oriented.
Just a couple years out of high school, Sharon set the goal of becoming an executive and owning a red Mercedes by the time she was 30.
Fortunately for everyone in our community, Sharon is also flexible. Under the influence of her then-beau, now husband, Jeff Smith, “I started seeing things from a different perspective,” Sharon said.
Her new goal was to become fluent in Spanish and visit Spain, which she did. She followed that with getting certified to teach English as a Second Language (ESL) so she could teach English in Spain.
All done.
After 25 years teaching ESOL and inspiring students at Portland Community College, Sharon retired. She now dedicates her seemingly endless energy and pursuit of goals to creating community through musical opportunities.
To listen to everything Sharon does is to get a little breathless with her vitality and enthusiasm.
Music as her message and method
Sharon loved music from childhood, although she never had formal training (her sister got the piano lessons). But she attended church where she liked the choir director and immersed herself in choral singing whenever she could.
In college, she used her love of music to learn Spanish. She bought an album by Argentine singer Mercedes Sosa, memorized every word and sang along. In doing so, she increased her vocabulary, her pronunciation and her fluency.
Sharon built on that experience in her classrooms, using music to familiarize students with the sounds and quirks of the English language. For speech class, her students chose a song they liked. Then they gave presentations about what the song meant to them.
Sharon said of her PCC career, “My favorite part was teaching people who were just beginning and who needed English to accomplish basic things, like registering.” She loved to “figure out creative ways to get people to interact and to accomplish what they needed to do.”
For Sharon, half the fun is the planning and organizing for the purposes of making every activity engaging. “Being creative in the classroom was something I enjoyed in different ways for all those years.”
Launched into bluegrass
Sharon’s recent activities are formed in large part by intention and goal setting, and in some part by whimsy.
Having bought their daughter a guitar, Sharon and Jeff soon realized the guitar was for them, not for their daughter – who wanted to play fiddle. That purchase started years of interacting with musicians, through guitar lessons, their daughter’s music camps and hanging out with a friend who liked to play.
And when a lovely accordion caught Sharon’s eye, she bought it. In usual Sharon fashion, she got serious about learning to play.
As it did for so many, Taborgrass launched Sharon into the world of bluegrass. (Taborgrass, which Greg Stone started expecting maybe 15 students, grew into a hugely popular introductory class for bluegrass instrumentation and songs, eventually filling two separate sessions every Saturday).
On her first day, feeling timid to play with others, Sharon was greeted by Mitch Cline. Mitch settled her next to a Taborgrass regular, Greg Penner, who made her feel welcome and became a long-time friend and music buddy.
Mitch soon invited Sharon to jam with The Featherweights, an after-class session for what Sharon describes as “people who had no idea what a jam was.” There she learned basic jam protocol and was encouraged to bring songs to lead.
It wasn’t long before Sharon was jamming regularly, including organizing outdoor jams once COVID hit. And she was one of the first (and really the only person I know of) who learned how to overcome the limits of on-line jamming during the pandemic. While many of us were on Zoom song circles while we kept our distance from others, the latency issue inherent in electronic communications made it impossible to play songs at the same time.
Sharon embraced jamulus, free software that reduces latency – the delay that usually makes it impossible for people to play together over the internet.
Sharon said, “I guess I have promoter tendencies. So, I was telling everyone I knew, ‘Come on, let’s try this.’” She admits to feeling “pretty bossy,” about people having the right mics and equipment to use the program. “But when we all got online and played together, it was kind of amazing!”
Let ‘er rip!
Before the pandemic shut things down, Sharon started a steep learning curve – about bluegrass, about jamming and about the amazing community that music can create.
When the world began to open up, Sharon was considering what to do with her newfound knowledge – coupled with her long-time love of organization and supporting people’s learning. That’s when her engagement with Portland’s acoustic music community really took off.
In asking herself, “What do I really need musically and socially,” she explored her own interests, passions and intentions. She came to appreciate and unapologetically assert her leadership tendencies. She said, “I’m going to collaborate, and, at the same time, make clear my ideas and how they work.”
That realization freed her up to make a lot of great things happen.
Perhaps her most notable accomplishment is helping Threshold Brewery become a go-to spot for acoustic and bluegrass music.
“We started out with a Saturday afternoon jam, then we progressed to having an open mic” on Saturday evenings. “Then we developed what I called the Showcase, where I would pick various people to play for half an hour on a Saturday night.”
This evolved to paying bands for Saturday and Sunday evening shows. Sharon has spotlighted bands and ensembles just starting out, while also hosting some of the best established Portland musicians.
Once the venue became known as a music center, other musicians wanted to play there. On Tuesday nights a group of old time/bluegrass musicians alternate with Gypsy Jazz performers, often playing to members of a running club that ends their runs at the Threshold.
The pub is an exciting place to be for many reasons, including the wide variety of ages – from families with toddlers to 30-somethings to boomers – who congregate there to hear music.
Come together, right now
“Apparently,” Sharon said, “I like to start jams!”
She loves Klezmer music, so she started a Klezmer jam at Eastside Jewish Commons. She and Jeff host a monthly jam at Kennedy School, a result of a partnership she initiated between Concordia Neighborhood Association and Bubbaville.
She and Jeff, who primarily performs on bass these days, play old-time music as well. They have formed a cozy old time group called the Tabortones which play locally and at farmer’s markets.
Building on the welcome she received at Taborgrass, she wants to create a safe space for beginners and others who crave the experience of playing in a group setting.
The next thing?
Sharon said, “If I have a goal, it’s to channel all my musical energy into my own musicianship.
“I’m getting better on my instruments. I understand music theory more and more, and it’s exciting just to keep growing.”
Playing the accordion with the Tabortones is very satisfying for Sharon. “I love playing my accordion, and I like to find ways it fits in. I enjoy exploring the ways all my musical voices, including guitar and singing, join with others in various settings.
With respect to performing, “Playing music on the front porch and having the neighbors come by with smiles and waves – that’s all I need!”
To keep up with Sharon, her jams, Threshold performances and more, visit her website and ask to be included in her email notifications.
Hold your breath, dive in and have fun!