House Concerts: A Look at an Increasingly Popular Venue of Opportunity by Annette Warner

Who wouldn't love their personally chosen music LIVE in their own living room? The popularity of House Concerts is well on the rise and largely caters to acoustic Indie-Style Artists and the people who enjoy them. A House Concert is an intimate way to present live music in ones own home, and a very popular way to promote your Indie Artists among the Indie Artists. There is nothing that Singer-Songwriter's and Performers enjoy more at their shows, than someone listening to what they have to say through their music. When you combine that with a warm, inviting, intimate atmosphere, well….it just doesn't get any better than that.

House concerts are performed in a variety of ways and locations. More and more Indie Artists are providing that as an option on all promotional material, and submit demos to House Concert venues all over the country. Many of those established House Concert Hosts that have opened their homes to traveling Musicians get hundreds of Press kits in on a monthly basis and fight through the endless list of talented artists to arrive at 1, 2 or 3 artists per month or even less. So the opportunities for the Artists are obviously far fewer than there are Musicians for the Hosts.

I have been to several House Concerts in my time and I've discovered one thing about them that never changes; it really doesn't matter who is playing. There is just something about being a part of such a sweet experience that brings me back every chance I get. I have enjoyed such artists as Janis Ian in the past several years in a setting so close you can just reach out and touch them. It is just something else to be able to carry on a conversation with an entertainer you really admire, on level ground, munching on the same platter of celery sticks and drinking from the same Java pot. I've even been to see an "up and coming" near local Artist play at a friends B-day party…and got the same warm fuzzy in my tummy. House Concerts are just becoming down right successful! I think it's wonderful to have this alternative enjoyment of music and more people need to experience it in my opinion. Many hosts have a gathering of close friends that support their concerts, others open the doors to strangers who pre-arrange their presence and great friendships are made! Still some are by special invitation only and not advertised at all.

The average cost for attendance at a house concert is between 8.00 and 15.00, where either all the buckage goes to the artists playing, or a small percentage is taken to cover the cost of only expenses for the host and the rest goes to the artist. A covered dish style offering of refreshments, usually dessert, coffee and other beverages is offered and the host will normally go to great pains to arrive at a cozy, relaxing and appropriate setting for the mood of the music being offered. Themes are not uncommon and most hosts do their own booking according to their own tastes. Some hosts prefer the live band scene in their homes, while others gravitate toward classical, folk and contemporary tunes. Artists are finding that this is a completely substantial boost to the traveling funds on most occasions and just like any other venue, it needs to be well promoted. Once a reputation is gained for good quality shows, word will spread and before long there is a waiting list for those that want to attend. An even longer list of musicians, await their chance to meet the acquaintance of the most popular House Concert Hosts. It's fast becoming just as competitive an environment as most notable venues.

Some house concert series across the country are held in backyards as well. Some homes host concerts all year long -- eleven or twelve each year. Some house concert series are seasonal. And in order to have a concert in your home and not be considered a "business", they must be officially "FREE" to attend, however; voluntary and suggested donations are pretty much par and needed to reimburse quality performers and most homes don't have a problem collecting this donation for the mere experience it offers. So, the "recommended donation" is still as close to being mandatory as you can make it. Without the money, you could not get the caliber of musicians needed to keep participation and your series going.

A front page article about house concerts in the New York Times in late 1999 estimated that about 500 people across the country were hosting house concerts on some kind of regular basis. And I think the number has probably increased significantly since that time as the trend has really taken off! All any musician or individual has to do that's interested in playing and/or hosting a house concert, is just simply go keywords 'house concert' and a wealth of info awaits you on the world wide web. Come on in…they're keeping the light on for ya : )