House concerts are a concept that started with the jazz of the 1920′s.  They were called rent parties then and allowed neighbors to help neighbors, raising money for the musicians or other poor tenants looking to keep their landlords off their backs.

As the bell tolls for the music industry as we know it and jazz institutions fade into oblivion, the music struggles to find room to breathe.  I first heard of house concerts in December by way of David Valdez and his excellent blog, Casa Valdez.  He quotes friend John Stowell:

John was saying today that he was hearing from musicians all over the country that things were getting pretty rough. He thinks that the future of Jazz is house concerts. He may be right about that. The future certainly doesn’t seem like it’s going to be the Jazz clubs. There’s nothing more rewarding than playing for a small room full of people who are intensely interested in your musical performance. No blenders whining in the middle of a ballad or smokers in the first row chatting away, just attentive listening.

House concerts appear to be finding various levels of success from coast to coast.  Baltimore’s Jazzway 6004 is a not-for-profit group dedicated to bringing live jazz to listeners via  Marianne Matheny-Katz’s home (pictured).  50-60 guests pay $20-50 for a concert and dinner, dessert, or hors d’ouvres.  You’ll find the concerts advertised at various venues in the area and even on Craigslist.

You’ll also find house concerts at Chez Hanny in San Fransico.  The $20 suggested donation includes a potluck dinner there.  Evansville, Indiana’s Harry and Linda George have hosted concerts in their home after seeing folk acts perform in a similar venue and Minneapolis residents Kathy Vessells and John Hughes started hosting musicians for the entertainment of family and friends.  There is even an organization devoted to the development and promotion of house concerts.

NYC trombonist elizabeth! (Who I had the pleasure of meeting at IAJE – she was one of the Swayettes) lists at the top of her itenerary “Your Address Here” as she explains the plasures and responsibilities of hosting House Concerts.

The day I bought our 1917 Bungalow in Lakeland, Florida, I though it’s wide transitions from room to room lent themselves to small crowds.  I quickly realized that, until the floor is reinforced, the 100-year-old TNG pine just won’t allow it.  Until then, I invite you to invite me.

If you are interested in producing a house concert in Central Florida (or anywhere, for that matter) and would like to discuss the details, please feel free to email me.  House concerts can be produced at little or no cost for the host and are an excellent way to show homes for sale or gather friends for special occasions.

Tags: house concerts, iaje, Jazz, Local

This entry was posted on Friday, March 13th, 2009 at 4:45 pm and is filed under blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.