house concerts and 21st century touring

I’m sure I’m not the only artist who enjoyed a surprisingly low turn-out for last night’s concert. For some reason, most people preferred to stay home (and avoid the torrential downpour) and watch Michael Phelps make history. For a moment, I kind of felt like I was in lane 9.

However, the small crowd that gathered really enjoyed themselves, connected with me, bought CDs, and generally made me feel pretty good about the 5 hour drive that day, as well as the upcoming 5 hour drive back. Under the circumstances, I can’t imagine feeling the same way about the results at anything but a house concert.

It’s amazing that when you make the right choices, even a major set-back won’t shake your belief in what you do. In this case, it’s almost impossible to call it a set-back at all. It’s important to keep score - but it’s so gratifying that my scorecard is much different than it used to be.

Thanks for the Miga and coffee this morning, and your continued friendship.

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For immediate release: August 8, 2008

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ConcertsInYourHome.com adds “how-to” videos to help artists promote house concert performances to their fans.

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Despite the simple and straight-forward term, the mention of “house concerts” often draws blank stares and question marks from people who have not yet experienced one of these intimate, low-production-cost music performances. House concerts have been going on for centuries (classical parlor concerts, blues and jazz “rent parties,” etc.), but are becoming an increasingly vital part of acoustic and small-act tours.

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CIYH has made available the first of a series of “how-to” videos so that artists and hosts can better communicate (and promote) the concept to their fans and friends, respectively. The video includes pictures of dozens of artists as well as live shots taken during house concerts around north America. It also features some short video clips of actual house concert performances.

The video is available on YouTube, and several pages on the ConcertsInYourHome website. Artists are encouraged to use the video (it’s a free tool) to inspire their fans to join the growing house concert community. The site already features hundreds of artists and house concert venues from around the world, although the majority of the activity occurs in the U.S. and Canada.

The video: http://concertsinyourhome.com/how-to.html
How artists can use the video: http://www.concertsinyourhome.com/blog/archives/180

ConcertsInYourHome.com is a free website to promote the growth of house concerts around the world. The site is funded by (optional) artist memberships, that allow access to the growing database of house concert venues.

Contact: Fran Snyder, 817-789-2936

Additional Resources:
http://www.concertsinyourhome.com/press.html

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I just spoke with one of our former hosts, who gave up something he loved (house concerts).

He had built a beautiful gazebo/amphitheater in his backyard with house concerts specifically in mind. The events and the view were simply breathtaking, and his series became very popular in his rural Texas community.

Then, the next door neighbor put up an oil well, ruining the view, and pumping oil out of the ground 24/7. It’s easy to see that it must have been a depressing site, and a serious reason to re-consider hosting events there. Accordingly, he hasn’t hosted a show in quite some time.

When I called and heard his story, I was surprised to hear that he never even considered asking one of his many “regulars” or volunteers to host an event at THEIR place! I could almost hear the wheels turn in his head. Or what about moving the event inside? That’s where most house concerts happen anyway!

He intimated that hosting shows was the most fun he’d ever had. And he gave it up simply because he couldn’t think outside the box (OK, it was a really nice box.) when change became necessary.

I explained to him that we have more than a handful of hosts on our website who don’t use their own home. They organize, book, and help promote concerts in SOMEONE ELSE’S home. Same fun, half the work.

If you love live music, independent artists, and yes, house concerts, please don’t let the little things (or oil wells) get in the way. All you need is some friends, some space, and great music.

I hope I’ve inspired him to jump back in. Hosts are a more valuable resource than last-century oil.

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