House Concerts

House concerts are a great way to share your love of music with family and friends.  In many ways, your house is the perfect venue for live acoustic music, because it is already an intimate space, and great music with an attentive small crowd lends itself to profound musical experiences.  

House Concerts vs. Private Events

The main difference between booking Cort or one of his bands for a house concert, or hiring them for a private event, is that we'll be relying on you to collect donations from your guests at a house concert.  Instead of costing the host money, it requires time and a solid plan to make the event successful.  Following are some tips to make it successful for you, your guests, and the musicians.  If you'd like to hire Cort for an event, visit our Weddings and Private Events page for more information, including an idea of the cost.

Keys to a Successful House Concert

  • Evaluate your potential performance space - WIll the room sound good?  Is there a good spot for musician(s), with enough space and the potential for lighting just the stage area?  Can you create seating for 30 or more people?  Ideal audience sizes vary from space to space, but less than 25 people make it a little difficult for the musicians to make enough money, and over 50 people can make it necessary to have a small PA (amplification), which might otherwise be unnecessary.
  • Invite and be sure to manage rsvps - Whether it is word of mouth, an email list, a Facebook event or old fashioned postal invitations, you should know how many people can fit comfortably in your performance space, and go about getting reservations for those spaces.  Just inviting folks, but not following up with a guest list can lead to an overcrowded room or a disappointing turnout.  Working hard to get a perfect sized audience and presenting high quality music will get easier every time, as your circle of friends and family realize the value of your events, and consequently, putting on a house concert can lead to doing it again and again. 
  • How to make a performance work financially for musicians - Guests at your house concert should expect to make a donation to the musician, and so including a suggested donation ($15-20) on the invitation, on any follow-up info, and on a well displayed sign next to a donation jar/box that everyone will see when they arrive at the concert, or which gets passed around during a set break after you make an announcement reminding guests to be generous if they like the music.  Announcing CD sales can also help make the evening a success for the musicians.
  • Throw a great party, and let the music do its magic - You can provide a nice refreshment/snack layout, just as you would for any party you were throwing, or make it a potluck.  Whatever works for your circle of friends will make it a better night for everyone! 
  • Extra benefits you could provide for musicians - While house concerts aren't always the most lucrative gigs for musicians, they can be extremely enjoyable, and you can provide a great deal of extra value for the musicians, particularly when they're already on the road.  These benefits can include, but are not limited to, a meal or two and a place to sleep for the night.

Visit our Contact page to inquire about booking Cort or one of his bands for a house concert.