If a Tree Falls is a Berkeley-based acoustic music trio specializing in beautiful three part harmony singing and string arrangements. We play covers of folk, rock and Americana songs from a wide variety of artists. Mark and Jennie met Bernie two years ago at a local open mic called HOOT! We are a group who like to make statements with our music about social or political issues but also self-acceptance and love. We chose our band name because of our shared love of botany, trees and wondering if anyone would ever hear us. To hear our music on youtube click on the image.
About the band:
Bernie Lenhoff (Guitar, dobro, voice) Classically trained on guitar, Bernie found more in common with the singer/songwriters of the 60s & 70s. Inspired by the improvisation of the Grateful Dead, he taught himself electric bass and lead guitar. Moving to the Bay Area in the 90s, Bernie returned to his roots in acoustic guitar-driven Americana/folk/rock/pop, often covering other artists with fresh inventive arrangements. His latest tangent is learning dobro, inspired by its melodic expressiveness. Bernie considers his beloved dobro (“The Mighty Scheerhorn”) to be the fourth member of IATF.
Mark Walstrom (Guitar, mandolin, nyckelharpa, voice) Mark started playing guitar in High School (wow so long ago!) to spite his older sister and monopolize her instrument. When he was growing up his family moved around Wisconsin and Minnesota and he later spent two years working in northern Wisconsin cranberry bogs to earning his master’s in Botany. He then moved to Oregon where he worked with in commercial plant propagation and joined an Irish music band. He worked at UC Berkeley as their plant collector for 20 years before retiring to open Timbre Folk and Baroque in Berkeley where he builds, repairs and sells musical instruments.
Jennie Walstrom (voice, nyckelharpa) Mark’s daughter, Jennie has been singing with Mark since before she was old enough to understand what she was doing. Together, Mark and Jennie like to play and sing Swedish folk music. Mark taught Jennie how to play nyckelharpa (Swedish key fiddle) from the time she was in High School and now they play at local Swedish gatherings and festivals including Lucia Day and Midsommar. Like her father, Jennie is interested in science and plants. She is now a full-time knitter and part-time High School chemistry teacher at Holy Names High School in Rockridge.
