HOUSE CONCERTS

House Concert

Having initially been inspired by the likes of Susan Enan, Steve Lawson and countless others, I’ve started to play small and intimate gigs in people’s living rooms.

While this may seem like an new idea to some, the house concert movement is very well established in the States and is popular here in the UK as well (if you’re interested in finding out more about this, I wrote a short research study a few years ago on the UK house concert scene – here it is).

It’s very simple – you just invite some friends to your house for the evening to hear me play some of my music. If you want to, you can fire out emails to your friends, set up a Facebook event page, or put flyers through your neighbours’ doors. Feel free to copy and paste some blurb from this website if that helps.

It’s all acoustic (no gargantuan PA required!) and all you have to do is provide some snacks (how much food you provide is up to you) and drinks (guests are often invited to bring their own).

You don’t even need to have a big space – the first house concert I played was in a tiny living room, but the host still managed to squeeze 30 people in and it was an amazing night. Here’s what the host had to say about that gig:

“It was a real privilege to have Andrew perform in my living room – his music is enchanting and his lyrics are fresh and thought provoking – well suited to a wee room with an attentive audience, wine and cake. The gig itself didn’t take too much time to organise, and was definitely worth the effort. Enjoyed by all and made for an unique and extra – ordinary evening. Would definitely do this again.”

And here’s some kind words from another of my house concerts hosts:

“I love when our home is filled with good friends, food, refreshments, and the buzz of stories being traded, journeys travelled, burdens carried and laughter shared. One sunny Saturday evening in June we managed to cram about forty folks into our living space and it was a pleasure to let those gathered connect with Andrew’s music first hand. In addition to relaying observations, questions, doubts and fears in a manner that willingly engages the heart and the mind, Andrew has a wonderful way of interpreting and re-telling stories of old, familiar to some and becoming uniquely fresh in the translation. The set was peppered with songs spanning his entire archive, wonderfully re-worked acoustically with the occasional use of pedals and not even a microphone to hide behind. Two forty minute sets amidst a great evening left everyone latching on every line, complimented by the disarming chat that accompanied the music. All in all, an evening that created some truly wonderful memories.”

Ideally, I’d be playing to at least 15-20 people. The gig will typically cost somewhere between £10 – £15 per ticket (or ‘suggested donation’) depending on how much it costs for me to get to your house, and on how many people are coming.

So if you fancy giving it a shot, or just want to find out more, please get in touch via the form on the contact page.

And just to tantalise you even further, here’s a couple of blog posts people have written after seeing me play at a house concert:

http://www.simonvarwell.co.uk/calamateur-house-concert/

http://bindsyoutome.blogspot.com/2011/11/house-gig-calamateur.html