Street musician entertains at farmers' market

On the outskirts of rows of fresh peaches, apples, cucumbers and fragrant wildflowers at the Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market, street performers filled the air with their various musical talents.

Cloggers, fiddlers and classically-trained orchestra members were just a few performers who freckled the streets.

But the act that seemed to draw the biggest audience was musician Mitch Rice and his friend, Joe Porowski’s bobbing Macaw.

Rice said he considers himself a family musician.

“Kids like me a lot, and I play family music,” Rice said. “I have more veggie songs than anyone else I know.”

Rice played the ukulele and the harmonica.

But he’s a talented man, as he said he plays other instruments on the side. By playing multiple instruments, Rice can mix up his set from time to time.

After all, he has been performing at the Bloomington Farmers’ Market since 1979.

This past Saturday, though, Rice wasn’t the lone performer.

Gabrielle Steenberger, a junior at Bloomington South High School, said she began playing at the farmers’ market just a little under a month ago.

“I’ve been playing for 12 years,” Steenberger said. “But this is only the third or fourth time I’ve come to play solo fiddle.”

Steenberger said she met Rice at the farmers’ market, and he asked her to join in his performance.

“We just met here,” Steenberger said. “He was so nice, and he just invited me to play alongside him.”

With his family music and brightly-colored parrot, Nice’s act attracts a lot of kids. Many of them dance, and the braver ones try to touch the parrot, Steenberger said.

“We do get lots of kids, which is great because I love kids,” Steenberger said.

Mary Beth O’Brien and her two children, 7-year-old Auggie O’Brien and his younger sister, Marina O’Brien, are three of Rice’s returning audience members.

The family goes out of its way to see Rice’s performance when it frequents the Saturday market.

“We always go this way first,” Mary Beth said.

However, the family goes for more than just the music.

“We really like Mitch, and the kids really like the bird,” she said. “It’s a cool thing to see. He’s so friendly and welcoming. He’s a great part of the market.”

While Auggie was one of the kids who got to touch the bird, Marina stuck around for the music.

“I like to dance,” Marina said.

Between the bird and the music, anyone can find a reason to spend a little more time hanging around Rice’s set.

Rice said one of the most gratifying things about coming to the farmers’ market is seeing an influx of street performers over the last few years.

Walking around the stands, one can expect to hear different tunes coming from the many musicians spaced around the market.

There are also entertainers that aren’t musicians, such as dancers and
jugglers.

“There’s something so special about Bloomington community events,” Rice said. “Now there’s a whole new generation of street performers adding atmosphere, and that’s what I try to do.”

Follow local music reporter Janica Kaneshiro on Twitter @janicakaneshiro.