Beth Burden House Concerts - the basics
This info was best described by our friend and fellow musician Martine Locke.......
An intimate, up close and personal live music experience. Stories are shared, favorite songs are requested, questions are asked....each house concert is different depending on the audience and the host. One thing is always the same though...FUN!
The 411
Generally, House Concerts will have an audience of 25-50 people and a home needs to be ready to accommodate them. To fit that many people into a home, scoot regular house furniture to the sides of the living room and utilize seating, floor space, cushions or bring in more seating. You can request that people bring a chair or a cushion. (Outside house concerts are always a lot of fun weather permitting)
Money
House Concert hosts collect money from their guests for the artist. A host should let attendees know ahead of time they will be asking for a suggested donation amount and all the proceeds will be going directly to the artist, that saves anyone from feeling weird about asking for or giving money. In our experience, people are far more receptive if they know ahead of time what is expected of them and it saves any awkward moments.
Mother Jane requests a sliding donation of $10-20 or $15 per head/ $25 per couple and will work with the host to determine what they believe their audience can afford.
Format
There's usually some sort of mingling period, for a half hour to an hour, wherein folks begin arriving and sipping on bevs, munching on treats and socializing. BYOB potlucks can be great! Whenever "start time" rolls around, the concert commences . . .shows will either consist of two sets of 40-45 minutes length or one set of 75 minutes, depending on the crowd.
The host will let people know the show is going to start, directing them to the area where seating is, and introduce the artist. Everyone settles down on chairs and on couches, and on throw pillows, and however they can find a comfortable nook for themselves -- and then the music begins.
How to get People to Attend
Enthusiastic word of mouth is by far the most affective way to get folks to come to a house concert you are hosting. Talk it up big and urge folks to visit the website and check out some more tunes. We have lots of promotional materials available (photos, quotes, MP3s) to help you put together an enticing invitation to send or email to your friends and family and coworkers. If you're excited about the house concert -- then spread that excitement among your friends. They'll be intrigued, at least. It's usually a good idea to have some sort of RSVP system in place -- to get some idea of how many folks to expect and how many more to invite. Some folks use Evites or Facebook invitations to keep track of their guest list.
**One note **
It's important to make sure, in the promotional process, that your guests understand that this will be a house concert ,
.............and not just a house party that has some music going on in the background.
