Friday, November 20, 2009

Concert Nights at Home

When I was about eleven, my mother worked on Thursday evenings, and my dad and I had to fend for ourselves (which in those days meant that we ate the dinner mom had prepared before she left!).

After the dishes were done, dad and I would have a concert. We had a stereo - a novelty at the time - and could play either the old 78rpm records or the newer 33rpm ones (45s, too). My father had a largish collection of 78s with everything from Bach's Inventios to Spike Jones's craziness




Ah, we only had the sound when I was a kid. Spike Jones on video is a find, complete with zany sounds, lots of slapstick, even cross-dressers.

Of course at the age of eleven, I loved the Spike Jones best and could listen to it over and over, perhaps as only an eleven-year-old can. The Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin (my highbrow favourite at the time), Caruso, and Mario Lanza stuck as well, though. Since then, I have had a love of music, classical and otherwise, that I always attribute to my father.

When I was invited to an in-home concert in September, it brought back all those memories. And the concert didn't disappoint - I previously wrote a blog entry about the artist Charlie A'Court.

The idea of concerts in private homes is brilliant. For many smaller communities, it means seeing artists one would otherwise never even know about. The Home Routes method involves one host signing on for six concerts, spaced out over a few months. The tickets are very, very reasonable, and the in-home atmosphere is good, probably because it's all friends and friends of friends.

A quick Google search indicates that this is a popular method for promoting artists, and many organize such concerts for a profit.

Home Routes "is a not-for-profit organization made up of folks just like you and is dedicated to the love of music, to making music more accessible to a greater number of people and to supporting the artists that make the music."

I don't know this for sure, but believe the not-for-profit way surely has a much more down-to-earth and satisfying dynamic than a for-profit endeavour.

Then again, maybe I'm just spoiled from all the "Dad and Me" concerts that were all about love of music and sharing.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like this post very much, a memory post. :0)

ChrisJ said...

Thank you, A.J. It's always fascinating to me just what elicits which memory.

Dorothy Rimson said...

Woow. what a post. Really enjoyed Reading this one. Thanks for posting. :-)

ChrisJ said...

Dorothy, I'm glad you enjoyed reading the post; I sure enjoyed writing it. Thank you.

Cher Duncombe said...

Home Routes sounds like a wonderful idea. Don't hold me to this, but I believe one of our neighbors has this in their home, at least during the summer. When my husband and I are sitting on the patio, we can hear lovely concert music emanating from their home. We sit back and enjoy it too. It's too bad we don't know them. I bet it's a fabulous experience and for a good cause as well.

Great memories shared about your Dad!

ChrisJ said...

AskCherlock - be brave, buy some wine and invite yourself to the concert! Of course, enjoying it on the patio is also a good thing.

Pearl said...

this seems like a great way to encounter music. like an Eastern House party mixed with a salon.

ChrisJ said...

Brilliant, Pearl - an Eastern house party/salon. I would really like to go to one of those.