So, You Wanna Have a House Concert?
A Discussion Manual for Hosts + Musicians
After years of playing + hosting house concerts, I noticed that people kept asking me about these mystical, magical events. No doubt about it: music makes magic, but the actual making of the House Concert is hardly mystical. I've laid it all out for you, Hosts + Musicians, so that you can go have clear, thorough conversations and build wonderful shows. May it lead to so much music.
Let’s begin!
The HOST will ABSOLUTELY NEED:
▢ Willingness, interest, excitement to have music in your home (or space, etc.)
▢ A specific, selection, or range of open dates
▢ Space for 20+ people (preferably seated) + chairs
▢ Bathroom
▢ Table for refreshments
▢ Table for the artist to sell merch (CD’s, T-shirts, etc.)
▢ A place for the Musician to get ready/have a moment of quiet, “Green Room”
▢ Clarity about needs + limits, ability to communicate clearly + delegate when needed
▢ Sense of what’s ideal for you, to build/communicate with the Musician, especially if they’re new.
▢ Knowledge of the legal ins and outs*
▢ This checklist, to discuss with the Musician!
The HOST will feel it’s NICE TO HAVE:
▢ A large and/or responsive community who will come hear music
▢ Plenty of parking
▢ Somewhere for the musician to sleep (if they’re in from out of town)
▢ Dinner (and breakfast) for the musician (especially if they’re in from out of town)
The MUSICIAN(s) will NEED:
▢ Willingness, interest, excitement
▢ A date (or range)
▢ Good photo. In focus, see your eyes, get a sense of you. Nice to have at least one performing.
▢ Live video of what you’ll sound like in this context, IE: (relatively) acoustic
▢ Working website + social media
▢ Sense of what’s ideal for you, to build/communicate with the Host, especially if they’re new.
▢ Place to stay - can the Host host, or find someone who can?
▢ Something to eat - dinner +/ breakfast. (Disclose dietary needs.)
▢ A place to get ready, Green Room
▢ All your gear
▢ Pleasant, inviting way to display + sell merchandise
▢ Mailing list signup/social media signup system
▢ Power strip (if you ever plug anything in)
▢ Extension cord (ditto)
▢ Directions + contact info ON PAPER (in case phone/service dies)
▢ This checklist, to discuss with the Host!
QUESTIONS TO ASK + ANSWER:
TIP: This might seem like a long list. Don’t worry - it’ll go quickly. House Concerts are both more and less work than you anticipate and a ton of fun. I’ve put all the options here so you don’t have to think them up. Some of it might not apply. It’s all just here to ease the path for you to have fun.
GETTING TO KNOW YOU
▢ Have you done this before?
▢ What is your vision for this going absolutely perfectly?
▢ What else?
DATES
▢ What dates are available?
▢ Is there any flexibility?
HOST
▢ Is this a regularly-scheduled series?
▢ If you’re a regular host, how far apart are your shows?
▢ How far away (date + location) do the Musician’s other shows need to be?
MUSICIAN
▢ Are you On Tour?
▢ Where + When is your closest show?
SPACE
MUSICIAN
▢ What kind of space do you need to play in?
▢ You, performing ▢ Instrument storage (IE extra guitar on a stand)
▢ Mic stands ▢ Amp(s)
▢ Will the performance need amplification?
▢ No ▢ Host provides ▢ Musician provides
HOST
▢ How many people can comfortably fit in the space?
▢ Do you have seats? In what form?
▢ # _____
▢ Rent from ________________
▢ Borrow from library, community space, synagogue/church/mosque...
▢ Does the furniture need rearranging?
▢ Who will do that?
▢ When?
▢ How much + what kind of space is there for the Musician(s) to play?
▢ Is there a nearby outlet? ▢ Do you have a power strip?
ACCESSIBILITY
▢ Wheelchair accessible?
▢ Entrance
▢ Listening space
▢ Bathroom
▢ Animals
▢ Dogs ▢ Cats ▢ Other animals ________________
▢ If so, where will they be?_______________________
▢ Large/low seating options ____________________________
▢ Ask all guests, “What do you need in order to be utterly comfortable at the show?”
DRAW/AUDIENCE
HOST
▢ Who is your audience?
▢ Previous turnout
▢ Effective strategies: what has worked before?
▢ Will you host a Single Artist? Co-bill (more than one)?
▢ Are kids welcome at this show? What ages?
MUSICIAN
▢ What is your draw?
▢ Do you need a guarantee? (Discuss what this actually means to you.)
▢ Are kids welcome at the show? What ages?
COSTS
▢ What kind of money does the Host need?
▢ None
▢ Flat rate $______
▢ Reimbursement for snacks (Discuss process for reimbursement)
▢ Percentage of door/merch ___%
▢ Other costs:
TICKETS
▢ Does the Host offer a $$ guarantee?
▢ Reservations
▢ Host’s responsibility
▢ Musician’s responsibility
▢ Other__________________________________________
▢ What ticket price will actually work for YOUR audience/community?
▢ HOST $_____ ▢ MUSICIAN $ _______
▢ Willa suggests AT LEAST $15-20
▢ Sliding scale
▢ Donation (“Suggested Donation $__” can give people a good sense of expectation)
▢ Kids/senior/student
▢ Pass the hat
▢ No One Turned Away For Lack of Funds (Discuss how you will work this)
▢ Pre-sale tickets?
▢ Brown Paper Tickets (or similar platform)
▢ Early bird price?
▢ What are your spots’ legalities of having a concert? Need to use “suggested donation”?
▢ Who will handle the money? By when?
TIP: Pick ONE way to organize incoming audience members (email reservations, facebook RSVPs, presale tickets, etc.) Having one (maaaaaaaybe two) streams of incoming information + funds will keep things smooth and minimize confusion. Too many options will confuse your audience - and you. I cannot encourage you strongly enough to consider pre-selling tickets, whichever way you choose. If you don’t make reservations or pre-sell tickets, you may end up turning people away at the door (especially if your space is small). If you withhold the address until purchase, it can guard against potential turn-aways, AND you’ll know how many cookies to bake/buy. All these ideas may not apply to you and your situation, but this certainly will: The simpler, the better.
If you are going to pass the hat, have someone (it could be the Host, Musician, or a delegate) introduce this idea verbally to the audience, give a sense of a good range (“We suggest somewhere in the range of $15-20, and whatever works for you works for us” - or whatever is true), and then walk the room, with the hat/bucket/basket, making eye contact with each person and saying, “Thank you.” Or just pass it and see what happens, but often people will feel more engaged if they are engaging with a human being in front of them. This applies at the door, if you take donations there; make sure whoever on “the Team” who works the door doesn’t feel squirrelly about talking about money. It’s part of the deal!
Further, why $20 for “just a house show”? Well, this, first and foremost: No musician can charge $10 for a show and make a living. Those days are are gone. Period. The end. (So there’s that.) Now consider what’s on offer at this House Concert: a sweet, quiet, comfortable listening room without distractions and with so many delights. No espresso machine, no cocktail shaker, no food orders hollered or solicited, no gum on your feet, no paperless toilet. A chance to truly hear handmade music on a human scale, even meeting the artist. (Also: cookies.) Don’t get me wrong - I dig a good venue show. And I write all this to instill my deep and abiding sense of the value of a $20 House Concert ticket. The Audience actually supports a living wage for the Musician and the Musician can truly play for the Audience. I’d say it’s cheap at twice the price.
NEIGHBORHOOD
▢ Parking
▢ Relationships with neighbors, potential needs thereof
▢ What needs to happen w/neighbors to have the event run smoothly, without interruptions?
▢ Invite neighbors?
▢ Neighborhood discount?
TIP: Courtesy, courtesy, courtesy, courtesy. Once more: courtesy. Host, if there’s ANY chance your neighbors will hear the music and/or be affected by multiple cars in the area, tell them about the show. Give them a good heads-up, invite them if appropriate, make a plan and stick to it. (“The music will be over by 10pm.”) Impeccability goes a long way here.
REFRESHMENTS
▢ Who will supply?
▢ What will you have?
▢ Eats____________________________________________
▢ Drinks __________________________________________
▢ Potluck? (in addition, or only? Dessert, savory, both?)
▢ Serving area
▢ Reusable cups/dishes/silverware
▢ Outside food/drink acceptable?
▢ Alcohol (yes/no)
▢ Receptacles: ▢ Trash ▢ Recycling ▢ Dish bin
▢ Know a great chef? Have a higher-income crowd? Maybe a “night of it”.
▢ Note ingredients on all dishes. If potluck, supply paper + pens for participants to do so.
TIP: Keep it easy to serve, easy to eat. If you’re going to host regularly, I highly recommend getting reusable items. When I started hosting I went to the local salvage yard and got 40 mugs for $20 - they pad for themselves in two shows. Another upside: wacky, mismatched mugs means everyone remembers which one is theirs.
THE SHOW
▢ Any genres/instruments unwelcome? ___________________________________
▢ Length of show___________________________
▢ Two 40-45 minute sets, with intermission for nosh + merch + schmooze
▢ One longer set (how long?)
▢ Multiple short sets (good for more than two artists)
▢ One or more round robin sets (multiple artists)
▢ Other ________________________________________________________
▢ What time will you allow people to arrive? (Also called “doors”) ________________
▢ What time will the show start and end?____________________________________
TIP: Plan for time to nosh and schmooze. That can be at the beginning, middle, end, or all. This adds to the intimacy and community feeling of what makes a house concert special. It also gives audience members a chance to speak with the Musician and buy merchandise in a relaxed setting. Also: cookies.
PUBLICITY / INVITATIONS
▢ Who may attend?
▢ Just HOST’s community, do not publicize address
▢ If so, how does the HOST plan to publicize/invite?
▢ The MUSICIAN’s community may attend
▢ Individual invitations
▢ To their mailing list
▢ General Public may attend
▢ HOST address may be posted:
▢ Nowhere (only Host community will attend)
▢ On a private/controlled invitation
▢ Provided upon ticket purchase
▢ To the Musician’s mailing list only
▢ Publicly
▢ Contact person will be
▢ Host
▢ Musician
▢ Other ________________
▢ Do either of you have local press connections?
▢ Social Media
▢ None
▢ Who will create the event/posts?
▢ Facebook ▢ Twitter ▢ Instagram ▢ Other
▢ Bandsintown ▢ Thrillcall ▢ Songkick
▢ Local online calendars ___________________________________
▢ Who makes the invite graphics?
▢ Host
▢ Musician
▢ Invitations include (if applicable):
▢ Date ▢ Address ▢ Time of doors, music, breaks, end ▢ Ages welcome
▢ Allergen + Accessibility info ▢ Ticket cost ▢ Contact info ▢ Timeline of show
▢ Musican’s info (name, photo, genre, blurb/quote, website, social media, other links)
▢ RSVP/ticketing instructions
▢ Note to guests RE neighborly kindness: parking, noise, comings/goings
▢ Guest, what do you need to be utterly comfortable at this show?
TIMELINE: IF SMALL LIST/SPECIFIC PEOPLE ONLY
—> 6 weeks out
▢ Prep invitation (all information, photos, graphics)
▢ Announce show via appropriate platform(s)
▢ Early bird discount? (And pick when you will remind people this is ending.)
—> 3 weeks out
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ Remind people about the upcoming show
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY)
▢ Include a video of the Musician
—> 1 week out (If tickets are available)
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ Remind people about the upcoming show
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY) + cut-off (if any)
▢ Ask what people need in order to be comfortable
▢ Include a video of the Musician
▢ Let people know how tickets are selling (if appropriate)
—> 1 day out
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ The Show is TOMORROW
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY) + cut-off (if any)
▢ Remind people of ticket sales cut-off time
▢ Can’t wait to see you!
—> Day of
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ The Show is TODAY!!!!
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY)
▢ Remind people of ticket sales cut-off time (if any)
▢ Can’t wait to see you!
IF ANNOUNCING PUBLICLY
—> 6 weeks out
▢ Prep invitation (all information, photos, graphics)
▢ Announce show via appropriate platform(s)
▢ Early bird discount? (And pick when you will remind people this is ending.)
—> 5, 4, 3, 2 weeks out
▢ Post with the same flyer/graphic
▢ Include upcoming show details
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY!)
▢ Ask what people need in order to be comfortable
▢ Include: video, interview, quote about the Musician, question for audience members
▢ Remind people when Early Bird Discount is ending.
—> 1 week out
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ Remind people about the upcoming show
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY)
▢ Ask what people need in order to be comfortable
▢ Include a video of the Musician
▢ Let people know how tickets are selling (if appropriate)
—> Up to every other day the week before
▢ Post with the similar flyer/graphic
▢ “The Show is in ___ days! 3 tickets available!”
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY) + cut-off (if any)
▢ Can’t wait to see you!
—> 1 day out
▢ “The Show is TOMORROW!”
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY)
▢ Remind people of ticket sales cut-off time (if any)
▢ Can’t wait to see you!
—> Day of
▢ Send another missive with the same flyer/graphic
▢ The Show is TODAY!!!!
▢ Remind people how to buy tickets (make it EASY)
▢ Remind people of ticket sales cut-off time (if any)
▢ Can’t wait to see you!
TIP: Whether you’re emailing a small group or blasting all over social media, it’s good to be consistent with the look of your messages. Make your flyer and then use those colors, photos, and fonts across all media. All the stuff doesn’t have to be the SAME, but the similarities will be a reminder of the event.
Here’s another place where your AMBASSADORS come in. No matter a closed or open invite, you may pick a few people (or eight) to be your Ambassadors. These are the people who help you get the word out. They will individually invite people to your show and be part of the “phone tree” of connection. Simply sharing an invite won’t catch everyone who wants to be caught - the eye contact (or “eye contact”, in the case of the internet) and person-to-person invitation will be what roots people to the event. (After time, if the Host hosts regularly, this will just start to feel second nature.)
If this feels like a lot, I promise you it isn’t; people will miss a lot of these posts. You’re not pestering, you’re offering people an opportunity to participate in something beautiful.
SUPPORT TEAM
HOST
▢ My helpers will be _______________________________________________
▢ Rearranging furniture, setting out chairs
▢ Shopping
▢ Cooking
▢ Ambassador: Publicity + Invites
▢ Set Up
▢ Take Down, Clean Up
▢ Door + Welcome
WRAP UP
▢ How you doing?
▢ What are the best ways for us to communicate, as we go along?
▢ Are we clear on who will handle what and how it will all go?
▢ Anything else?
*Note on legalities: It may or may not be legal to charge for goods or services where you live. You may not give a three-quarter hoot about it either way, but if you do, simply do a little research about what’s what in your area. Other local hosts or musicians may be good resources. It may be that the Musician receiving funds directly circumnavigates the issue. Language like “suggested donation” can also work, since you’re not technically selling something. There’s always this one: the Musician can sell something (a token, a CD, a song, really whatever they’d like) and include in the price a free ticket to this show. Just get yourself educated about what’s what in your area and then make informed decisions. And don’t worry!
Homeowner? You may also want to check with your insurance company about liability. People fall. People sneeze on each other. People do all kindsa funny things. I’ve never once heard of a House Concert Host being sued for anything, but, once again, if you’re a worrywort like me, you may want to just know all the information upfront. It may not be any different, insurance-wise, than throwing a party.
If you come up with other creative ways to be honest and proper, please please let me know and I’ll include them here.
ALL FEEDBACK WANTED + WELCOME.
Have you hosted or played? What REALLY worked? Tell us!
—> This document is meant for sharing. May the music GROW! Thank you for crediting.<—
With my thanks to Bergin O’Malley, Singer, Songwriter, and Checklist Queen, who originally recommended turning my FB Live talk into a checklist.
c. 2019 Willa Mamet