Showcase at the Palladium Theater, March 10th 2023. Photos by Donna Green.
Our 13th Annual Listening Room Festival was a celebration of music, intimate venues, and our growing community of music fans.
We had a wonderful festival, and managed to please a fantastic group of performers – Jenna Nicholls, Grace Morrison, Daniel Neihoff, Spencer LaJoye, and Hymn for Her.
When we started LRFest in 2012, it felt like a moonshot. I wanted to create a gathering to celebrate house concerts, and to create a music showcase opportunity in the middle of a profitable tour. Most importantly, they build a base of friends, fans and potential gigs in Florida that will pay dividends for years to come.
As is the case with house concerts, the sweet, listening vibe and profitability are the obvious rewards that mask the more important developments of community and connection. On this front, each year, we see more hosts and fans travel to Tampa Bay area to attend shows and make new friendships. We see them cooperate for routing, lodging, and even for volunteer help at each other’s events. The festival community is creating a rich, cultural tapestry of music support in our region.
For me, the biggest thrill is the growing number of hosts and fans who travel to St. Petersburg for this event. They come from different cities, different states, and even different countries – to take in a music vacation filled with house concerts and time with their tribe.
We hope you’ll join us for this one-of-a-kind festival next year!
HUGE thanks to our volunteers, our hosts, and the generous contributors who helped us bounce back from a couple of challenging years!
House Concert Photos from LRFest 2023. Photos by Fran Snyder.
Will you apply as a performer? Will you host a show in Florida or the southeast? Will you join your music tribe for a music vacation?
Florida “House Concert” Festival Connects Fans from All Over the World
The 13th Annual Listening Room Festival invites house concert presenters, artists and fans to join in this year’s festivities. Music-lovers from around the globe are traveling to St. Petersburg, FL to enjoy the house concerts, showcase, and planned group activities from March 9-13, 2023.
Five international contest winners will play the Festival Showcase (March 1) at the Palladium Theater in St. Petersburg, as well as house concerts in the surrounding region. This year’s artists are Daniel Neihoff, Jenna Nicholls, Spencer LaJoye, and Grace Morrison. Special guests Hymn for Her will showcase at the after-party. Reserved seats to the festival showcase are available ($35, $45, $100 for VIP) at the festival website http://www.ListeningRoomFestival.com
The main showcase at the Palladium Theater features all five acts. Four of them play the main stage, and Hymn for Her will play the VIP after party downstairs at the Side Door. The music is acoustic-driven genres varying from folk, to blues and soulful country.
House concerts, the core of the festival, stem from a tradition that is hundreds of years old, but has seen a resurgence in the past few decades. Music fans volunteer to host living room concerts, and invite friends to attend an up-close-and-personal show by a professional touring artist. Attendees are asked to make a suggested donation of $20-25 per person directly to the performers.
17 House Concerts are scheduled for Wednesday Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, and Monday of the festival. You can get the schedule and invites to these concerts by joining as a Listening Room Network FAN through the free link at http://www.ListeningRoomFestival.com
About the Listening Room Network:
Listening Room Network (LRN) creates and nurtures opportunities that pay artists to perform in a listening environment while bringing communities together with a renewed passion for live music. LRN and its signature websites (ConcertsInYourHome.com, OfficeConcerts.com) are leading innovators in the live music industry.
We invite you to join us for our 13th Annual Listening Room Festival, the yearly touchstone of our global network. This year, we want a record number hosts and fans from outside the Tampa Bay Area, so here’s a fun incentive to travel to us…
We’re giving away SEVEN VIP Concert Packages!
Each package includes: — Two VIP tickets to the Festival Showcase, our biggest event, Friday March 1st. — Two pairs of free passes to festival house concerts of your choice on Thursday 2/29, Saturday 3/2 or Sunday 3/3. (Meals, transportation, and lodging are not covered.)
The most common reason for dismissed inquiries is a 6 month expiry. Sometimes hosts “check out” (especially since the covid era) and go through a prolonged period of inactivity. We figure if they haven’t answered you in six months, then
1. they aren’t likely to answer, and
2. your inquired dates are probably no longer relevant.
So our system automatically dismisses the inquiry to wipe the slate clean. Next time they login they won’t face a backlog of out of date inquiries, and you are free to start over with a fresh inquiry if you like.
Sometimes we pro-actively discover that a host is unresponsive before the 6 month automation, and we manually mark that host as “unresponsive” which also dismisses the inquiry.
You’ve heard the old adage, “leave them wanting more.” As a host, you can encourage your artists to do that. Together, you can plan an evening that is vibrant and entertaining, and send your guests home feeling like THEY WANT MORE.
Unfortunately, some artists get TOO comfortable chatting with the crowd, tell stories between EVERY song, and sometimes don’t pick up on the fact that half the audience is dying for a break.
Unless your chairs are super comfortable, most people don’t want to sit for an hour straight.
In addition, house concerts are so intimate that you don’t want to stand or leave during the set. This can make the audience feel trapped instead of enthralled.
What is a tight set? You and your artists can agree to whatever you like, but here is what I ask of each act that plays my home.
First set: 40 minutes. Second set: 30-35 minutes, and ready for 2-song encore.
The point is, don’t be afraid to ask for what you want. You are building an audience. This is your series, and you want everyone to come back.
And remember, if the audience wants a second encore, they can ask for it! There’s a big difference between an audience that politely agrees to an encore, and an audience that insists upon it.
Listening Room Network was created not just to support house concerts, but to encourage concert promoters to create a listening atmosphere where everyone in the audience is engaged with the show. Foreground music, not background music.
The memories and connections made from these types of shows are unmatched, and helping you create this is our north star.
I have a multiple choice question for you. Which of these describes your concerts most accurately?
A. The audience does not interrupt or distract from the performer during the show – unless the artist is encouraging it. People rarely leave their seats during the set.
B. Most of the audience is paying full attention, but folks in the back may have quiet conversations. A few folks might come in and out of the performance area during the performance for refills and bathroom breaks, but the large majority of attendees stay engaged with the concert the whole time.
C. Ours is more of a relaxed party atmosphere, where the audience appreciates the music but can be a little chatty. Not everyone is watching and listening to the concert the whole time.
From the survey sent in July 2023, we received 28 responses. Here were the results, with comments below.
85% of respondents consider themselves “A” Listening Rooms and above average drivers. 8^)
Our audience is very aware that this is a concert for their benefit and are always attentive and respectful.
B&K Sands
We go so far as to turn off the lights in the house save the stage lights. We definitely fall under (a). Our audience respects the performers.
P. Kane
No beer available during the show 😊 And I would say that all house concerts we’ve been to in France belong to that category too.
M&C Goguey
No distraction from the audience. We do have occasional upstaging by pets.
J. Wolf
We have a great audience and they are here to listen to the music and participate when asked to join in. Since resuming after the pandemic, we’ve reduced our shows from monthly to quarterly.
R&J Paris
Almost completely an ‘a’ response. Occasional movement but rare
E. Lund
Usually everyone stays seated and quiet, but some of our friends are not concert goers, more bar types and came for the faster paced concerts so the atmosphere was different.
E&R Pettit
A potluck before and a break in between give guests plenty of time to chat!
T. Vaughn
Our audiences are quiet and respectful, but interact and sing along when the artists requests it.
T. Burba
Our audiences really wants to hear good music. 🙂 we are in it for the music (and maybe also the cookies at tge break and after the show)
K. Roche-Zujko
My audience is fully engaged in the concert. It is rare for anyone to leave their seat except at intermission
J. Braymen
As you can probably well imagine, we are an “A” all the way. We make announcements to that effect pre-show (along with several other things) and our audiences do a great job of complying with our policy. We DO encourage questions between songs (directed to the artists), however, and we warn our performers about that fact in advance (with the understanding that they can decline to answer anything they chose). But most folks don’t ask questions, other than myself or Mary Sue. We usually ask a few, just so other attendees can get the idea, but few follow our lead. But we do very much encourage a “two-way street” environment, as long as the communication is back and forth with the performer, not during a song (other than the occasional hoot and holler of encouragement or singing along requested by the performer), and NOT among audience members. Involuntary gasps of astonishment are acceptable, however. 😉
C. Moore
Mostly A but sometimes C.
K. Eberly
We have all three types of spaces. We have a private event space for singer songwriter which would fit A. A more bar atmosphere unattached with full stage that could b or c. And outdoor space that can be all of the above.
C. Wild
These responses are probably a bit biased, as those who provide a great listening room are likely to respond proudly, and those who find themselves in category “C” might be reluctant to respond.
LRN is glad to provide encouragement and tips for anyone who wishes to create a TRUE listening room, to help artists and fans connect in the best way we’ve ever found. Intimate and quiet spaces with an engaged audience.
It’s so annoying! And it’s not always TRUE, even though it’s not a lie*.
A LOT of hosts/venues insist on seeing an artist before they book them, and that makes complete sense. They’ve spent months/years building an audience, and earning their trust that the concerts are always great. And MAYBE, they once had an experience where they were impressed with an artist’s online channels, but were disappointed/embarrassed by the concert that took place.
That’s when they create the new RULE: Must see you play in person before booking.
So what is a touring artist to do? With the help of our REMINDER button, you switch to the long game. Here’s an example::
I’m booking a tour of Florida in September because I like mosquitos and hurricanes. One of the hosts I want to approach says they must see me before booking. OK. On their profile, I set a reminder that I want to reach out to them 4 weeks before my Florida shows, with a message like
“Hi Host, since you only book acts you’ve seen, I have booked 3 shows in your area in September, and I’d be delighted to put you on our guest list for any of the three shows… [list of dates, nearby cities.] It would be so great to meet you and to see if our live show connects with you like we think it will. Please let us know if you can make one!”
Ninja move: If no response, try again 10 days later.
Shaolin Master: If no response, try 2 days before the first show.
Buddha: Rest. Enjoy the tour as it was meant to be.
USE the reminder button. It can be super-effective.
*Not a lie? – I’ve seen more than one host break this rule when the right act with an undeniable video reaches out.
Showcase at the Palladium Theater, March 10th 2023. Photos by Phil DeSimone.
Our 13th Annual Listening Room Festival was a celebration of music, intimate venues, and our growing community of music fans.
We had a wonderful festival, and managed to please a fantastic group of performers – Ariella, The Rough & Tumble, Jeffery Straker, A Tale of Two, and Peter Mulvey.
When we started LRFest in 2012, it felt like a moonshot. I wanted to create a gathering to celebrate house concerts, and to create a music showcase opportunity in the middle of a profitable tour. Most importantly, they build a base of friends, fans and potential gigs in Florida that will pay dividends for years to come.
As is the case with house concerts, the sweet, listening vibe and profitability are the obvious rewards that mask the more important developments of community and connection. On this front, each year, we see more hosts and fans travel to Tampa Bay area to attend shows and make new friendships. We see them cooperate for routing, lodging, and even for volunteer help at each other’s events. The festival community is creating a rich, cultural tapestry of music support in our region.
For me, the biggest thrill is the growing number of hosts and fans who travel to St. Petersburg for this event. They come from different cities, different states, and even different countries – to take in a music vacation filled with house concerts and time with their tribe. Thanks to Christine and Michelle Goguey, Jim and Brenda Michienzi, and Alice Schaefer for making the trip this year!
We hope you’ll join us for this one-of-a-kind festival next year!
HUGE thanks to our volunteers, our hosts, and the generous contributors who helped us bounce back from a couple of challenging years!
House Concert Photos from LRFest 2023. Photos by Fran Snyder.
Will you apply as a performer? Will you host a show in Florida or the southeast? Will you join your music tribe for a music vacation?
Florida “House Concert” Festival Connects Fans from All Over the World
The 12th Annual Listening Room Festival invites house concert presenters, artists and fans to join in this year’s festivities. Music-lovers from around the globe are traveling to St. Petersburg, FL to enjoy the house concerts, showcase, and planned group activities from March 9-13, 2023.
Five international contest winners will play the Festival Showcase (March 10) at the Palladium Theater in St. Petersburg, as well as house concerts in the surrounding region. This year’s artists are Peter Mulvey, Ariella, Jeffery Straker, A Tale of Two, and The Rough & Tumble . Reserved seats to the festival showcase are available ($45, $100 for VIP) at the festival website http://www.ListeningRoomFestival.com
The main showcase at the Palladium Theater features all five acts. Four of them play the main stage, and The Rough & Tumble will play the VIP after party downstairs at the Side Door. The music is acoustic-driven genres varying from folk, to blues, country and soul.
House concerts, the core of the festival, stem from a tradition that is hundreds of years old, but has seen a resurgence in the past few decades. Music fans volunteer to host living room concerts, and invite friends to attend an up-close-and-personal show by a professional touring artist. Attendees are asked to make a suggested donation of $20-25 per person directly to the performers.
17 House Concerts are scheduled for Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday of the festival. You can get the schedule and invites to these concerts by joining as a Listening Room Network FAN through the free link at http://www.ListeningRoomFestival.com
About the Listening Room Network:
Listening Room Network (LRN) creates and nurtures opportunities that pay artists to perform in a listening environment while bringing communities together with a renewed passion for live music. LRN and its signature websites (ConcertsInYourHome.com, OfficeConcerts.com) are leading innovators in the live music industry.
I believe the new layout will be more compelling and effective for getting LRN fans out to your shows.
I once thought it was best to give folks the scope of our network, so they could share with friends in other areas, or check out shows where they travel.
Now we’ll focus on home regions, with lovely colorful pictures. Bulletin goes out every two weeks to fan members of LRN.
Listening Room Network 