house concerts and 21st century touring

I’ll make this short. There are only two reasons not to let people hear your music very easily on your website:

1. Laziness
2. Ignorance

You might as well buy a shop downtown, and never unlock the door.

Make it hard for people to hear your music. That’s a great strategy. 8^)

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I’m so excited to bring you this news. It’s taken several months of planning and a bunch of work, but the flyers are ready to go! Click the image to see it.

CIYH hosts can now log in and create these very easily, at the same time that they enter their shows into the new house concert calendars.

This works even if you promote shows for non-CIYH members, but it’s soooo easy with our artists because we already have their photos on file.

Once created, you simply email the URL to your mailing list. Soon we’ll add tinyURLs to make it even easier. They can RSVP directly from the flyer, click on artist links, and skip to your upcoming show flyers - all from the same page.

A big, heartfelt “thank you” goes out to our member artists - their membership fees funded this work. It simply would not happen without them.

Your fan,

Fran Snyder

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I often hear frustrated musicians talk about bookers (whether house concerts, festivals, or even clubs) and their reluctance to give a new artist (THEM) a shot. That venues tend to book the same people over and over without any desire to “open up” and book some new acts.

I’d like to point out that there’s a far better way to go about changing the landscape of “open venues” than complaining.

The old platitude of “be the change you want to see in the world” applies here.

Putting on any concert takes work, but many artists completely overlook the low-barriers to entry that house concerts provide. Even if you live in a one-bedroom shack, chances are you have a fan or friend that would be delighted in teaming up with you (using their home) to start a house concert series - one that you could run IN ANY MANNER YOU LIKE.

Bev and Greg are a great example of this, and they’ll be the first (or second) to tell you how this seemingly altruistic act has actually helped them as artists.

You will gain perspective, build a network of friends and fans, and maybe have a hell of a great time.

Don’t pin your hopes on Obama, arts grants, or people changing how they book their shows. We all have work to do.

Be the change. Your inauguration is today.

Best,

Fran Snyder
ConcertsInYourHome

http://concertsinyourhome.com - the center of the house concert universe.
http://www.squidoo.com/houseconcertbookings

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