House Concerts

Out of all of the weblogs I read daily (well I guess RSS feeds if you want to be technical), Kevin Kelly’s Cool Tools always seems to have something interesting. Today’s posting on the book, The Complete Guide to House Concerts, is no exception.

What is a house concert you may ask?

The definition’s flexible, but generally, it’s a show that’s presented in someone’s home, or a nearby private space (barn, backyard, shearing tent, you name it).

* Usually, but not always, the audience capacity is smaller than at a coffeehouse or club.

* The money collected usually (but not always) goes straight to the performers, with no “profit motive” on the presenter’s part.

* Often, but not always, house concerts are conducted “by invitation” (for practical reasons we’ll get into later), rather than as “public” concerts like a club or concert hall.

* Often – again with exceptions – there is little or no “sound system” – performers play and sing acoustically, unless someone needs a little amp for their keyboard.

* Refreshments, if any, are usually either a “pot luck” brought by the listeners, or provided by the hosts using a bit of the gate receipts.

* Sometimes – but definitely not always – the performers get a meal and/or lodging with the presenters as part of their compensation.

— House Concerts, Tom Neff

I am so intrigued by the idea of having a performer play a concert in my house. Liz and I have been toying with idea of moving* and I think this would be a great way to have a house-warming.

More information on House Concerts is available at the following sites:
houseconcerts.org
houseconcerts.com

* – As in “moving across town”, not “cross country”… Don’t worry, Mom and Dad.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 20th, 2005 at 3:44 pm and is filed under music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

3 Responses to “House Concerts”

  1. jr Says:

    does my coming over and singing off key count?

  2. Mike M Says:

    You’re welcome anytime, JR! :)

  3. marusin.com » Blog Archive » “You could hear Paul’s foot tapping from the very last row…” Says:

    [...] I talked about “house concerts” last fall and finally had the opportunity to attend one. Rick and Robin Klau hosted a party/concert in their lovely home with the extremely-talented Paul Curreri “booked” as entertainment. Paul was playing at a festival in the area the following night and Rick was able to arrange for him to come a day earlier and play at his house. I believe Rick said that he used to work with Paul’s dad (at least I think I remember hearing that?) and that’s how he became aware of Paul’s talents. [...]