Guidelines for a Successful House Concert
From an original guide drawn up by Acousticroof, a fantastic house concert organization situated in Atlantic Canada www.acousticroof.ca and run by our good friends Paula & Michael Fredericks.
(slight changes made for the UK reader and organizer)
Things to Consider Before Hosting a Concert
Make sure that you’re comfortable with the idea. Be sure that you are comfortable opening your home to performers and audiences.
Do you have enough seating room? You should have at least 20 seats in your home to host a house concert; the more, the better. These seats can include anything from chairs and couches, to pillows and carpets; just be up front with your guests about the type of seating that is available. Chances are if you don’t have enough seats, the performer will not make a decent wage. Also, decide if you would like to make seats available for only a close group of friends, or the general public.
Alcohol: Do you want to allow alcohol in your private home? Be prepared to deal with its appropriate consumption.
What is your smoking policy? If you allow smoking, be clear as to where it is permitted (outside, garage, etc.). Most people will expect a smoke free space in which to enjoy the music they have paid to see.
Council: You may want to talk to your local council about any by-laws and/or restrictions on your home. As you can imagine, if you have 50 guests coming for a house concert, parking, etc. may become an issue with your neighbours and/or the council. This may not be a problem at all, especially where guests can carpool or take the bus to your concert.
PRS fees: PRS (Performing Right Society) is the United Kingdom association of composers, songwriters and music publishers. It administers and collects licensing fees for its members when public venues host live performances. If you are a private homeowner hosting a house concert, these license fees do not apply to you. If you are holding a house concert at a public venue, you may want to contact PRS to license your venue
www.prsformusic.com/users/businessesandliveevents/
Parking. Ensure that you have adequate parking for performers and guests. Make parking instructions clear in your communications with guests.
Is your home accessible? If you have an accessible or somewhat accessible home, make it known. We all know people with physical challenges and if we can accommodate them and give them opportunities to enjoy music, it can add so much to these events.
Make sure you have time to promote the concert properly. This crucial topic is often overlooked. The harder that you work on behalf of the artist, the more tickets you will sell. Give yourself one month to contact friends, neighbours, put up posters, etc.
Decide on the “flavour” or mood of your concert venue. Is it to be a quiet “attentive listening” concert event? Or do you want to create a “kitchen party” feel? Discuss this with the artists and post your concert with full details for interested patrons.
Choose an artist you want to see perform. Your excitement about seeing the performance will be infectious as you go about promoting the event; you’ll do a much better job. Do not hesitate to say “no” to a performer who you are not interested having perform in your home.
Now You’re Ready to Book a Performer
When you contact the performer or the performers booking agent, there are a number of details that you should discuss. You may be able to negotiate with the performer on some of these details:
Confirm the performance date. Will the concert be during the week, or on a weekend? Weekends are usually best, but many successful concerts are held during the week.
How many seats does your venue have? The number of seats that your venue has will help the artist make decisions such as, whether they can do the show, or at what amount they will need to set the suggested donation price for guests attending the show.
Performance space: How much room is there for the performer? If the act is a three-piece or a four-piece, then they will need significantly more floor space than a solo performer to set up their equipment and perform. Even more floor space will be required to accommodate sound equipment, if needed.
Set a suggested donation amount. You need to establish a suggested donation amount so that you can start advertising, and/or collecting donations in advance. Depending on how established or well known the artist is, this amount will vary. Remember, you may be able to negotiate the donation amount with the artist.
When setting a donation amount. Consider whether the artist will receive the full proceeds from the donations, or whether you will keep a part of the proceeds to cover your personal expenses for hosting the concert.
What time will the performance be? This is a good time to ask the performer about breaks, and length of sets. Some performers like to play straight through, but most will play two 45-minute sets. A performance lasts between 1.5 hours and 2 hours on average.
Clarify sound equipment and electrical needs. Depending on the music artists, the show may be entirely acoustic or they may use sound equipment for amplification. Breeze & Wilson travel with their own sound equipment and will only need access to electrical sockets. The bottom line is that it is your home, so if you feel strongly about having a strictly acoustic show then make sure that this is discussed with the artist.
Cancellation policies: What are your cancellation policies should you not have an adequate number of seats reserved for the concert? Is the performer willing to play for a small audience?
Meals and lodging: Will you be providing a meal for the performers before or after the event? Let them know well ahead of time before they make travel and meal plans. Can you offer a nights lodging for the performer if the need should arise? Usually only necessary when the distance from home is considerable.
Contracts: Don’t be surprised if a performer or their booking agent asks you to sign a contract. Both parties involved, commonly use contracts for bookings. This is simply an opportunity for both parties to have important details in writing. This helps prevent surprise issues from arising.
Ongoing Details to Consider
Promoting your house concert: If you are planning to have 30 friends to a private house concert and no one else, then your promotion is partially done.
Of course, this isn’t always the case. Either way, your seats are not going to fill themselves. There is a lot of hard work behind a successful concert.
Ask for our free poster/flyer templates when the concert is booked. Remember, the sky is the limit in terms of how you would like to promote your venue and sell tickets. Don’t hesitate to ask for any of the other advertising resources we can offer.
Reserving seats/donation payments: Some venue hosts will simply reserve seats for guests if they confirm by email or phone. Other hosts may want to collect donations prior to the show. Advanced seat reservations are a sure bet. Alternatively, some people can mail cheques. Whatever you decide to do, make your ticket information available to guests so that they can reserve seats and/or pay their donations in advance. Keep a running list of who has pre-paid and/or reserved seats. Your goal is to pre- sell every seat for the concert.
Directions to your house concert: Be sure to give clear directions to both your guest and the performer well in advance. The best way to do this is by email. It is a good idea to also provide a phone number. Do not disclose the exact location of your event until people have made sincere bookings.
Would you like guests to provide food and drink? Some hosts advertise a potluck style concert; guests bring a small dish to share. Finger foods and desserts are a good idea because they reduce preparation work and clean up. Some venue hosts may choose to arrange the snacks for the event and recoup these expenses by taking a small cut of the ticket proceeds. Discuss this with performers in advance. Usually, guests will have a snack at intermission. Alcohol consumption is another area that you will have to address.
Seating: You may want to ask guests to bring folding chairs or cushions as needed.
Last Minute Details
Food: Designate a table for food and drinks.
Sound/electrical needs: Make sure that the performance space is near a power source, if required by the artist.
Merchandise: Designate a table that performers can use to display their merchandise.
Mailing list: Designate a spot where you can leave a mailing list sign-up sheet for guests. This will help you inform guests in the future about your house concerts.
Safety: Make sure that the performance and seating area is clear of objects and breakables.
Guest donations: You will be busy, so have a friend collect donations from those who haven't paid, and check them off a list. It wouldn’t hurt to have a small float handy to provide change for guests. Put the money in a safe place until you give it to the performer.
Have a space (as private as possible) for the artists to prepare for the gig.
They may need to change clothes, and/or store luggage, instruments, and other belongings.
Guest’s things: Designate a spot for guests to leave their coats, shoes, etc. when they arrive. Signage can help with this task.
Have a look at our website for more information about Breeze & Wilson and get in touch with us through the contact page.
Have a look at some of our videos on our YouTube site :
www.youtube.com/breezeandwilson
Toby Wilson & Graham Breeze