What is a "house concert"?
A house concert is a show put on by a music lover for other music lovers in their own home.
My name is Naomi, and I have enjoyed such shows in other people's homes, so when I moved house recently I was very keen to find a property that would offer me the option to do this, too. I was lucky enough to buy a house in Hertford that has a former carpentry workshop at the end of the garden. And that's how Backroads House Concerts was born.
From a glorified garden shed to a music venue
When I booked my first house concert, in April 2024, I had five months to get the space ready for use. I thought that was loads of time. I was wrong.
I stupidly did the fun things first: I sourced 30 second-hand school chairs, which just added to the chaos in the workshop. The first picture is how it looked in late June, before I took seven carloads of stuff to the tip and sold or gave away other things.
![IMG_6450[1]_edited.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/737f85_6ba53bdf922042c2bd9efe5e8aa19fc5~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_281,h_325,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/737f85_6ba53bdf922042c2bd9efe5e8aa19fc5~mv2.jpg)
Once I could get into the space, I removed an immense amount of sawdust and loads of spiders. I painted all the walls. I filled holes in the floor and then laid a lovely purple event carpet that I got for £20 (and a drive to Hampshire!) I bought guitar-themed fabric to hide the shelves and stole a black curtain from my dining room to use as a backdrop. I also had a handyman in to fix a damp problem and do some electrics to allow for a form of stage lighting.
I made it with three days to spare! And since then I have also replaced all the screws in the chairs and repainted their legs. My plans to have the draughty garage door replaced with a normal door have been a little delayed, but it should happen soon.
![IMG_6804[1].JPG](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/737f85_4739c9cf35b9452986cbe2827d824701~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_281,h_211,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/737f85_4739c9cf35b9452986cbe2827d824701~mv2.jpg)
What music can you expect?
My love is for Americana music — somewhere between country and folk but with an edge. I'm also happy with a bit of rock, blues, bluegrass or just plain singer-songwriter. The thing about a house concert is that I get to choose the music that I want to hear, and then I look for an audience that is prepared to trust my tastes. Of course, if you come to a show I am very happy to talk which artists you would like to see.
A house concert is an intimate space, and it's a residential area, so don't expect very many bands. The space suits solo artists and duos, but sometimes there might be more performers.
Touring international artists particularly benefit from house concerts because they get overnight accommodation and meals, which is a big expense otherwise. I will focus primarily on international artists, but there will be plenty of UK-based ones as well.
The need to fit into a touring schedule means that shows may take place on any night of the week.
Why
?
Back in the depths of time, I had a music website. I called it Backroads because that seemed to fit my feelings about Americana — it's not mainstream, it won't make it into the charts and my pop-loving daughter doesn't like it. It's something a bit different, hidden behind all the glamour of other genres but, in my view, with often a lot more to say.
Backroads the website was a lot of fun to run, but it took up a lot of my time and I eventually had to abandon it to concentrate on my family and a job that paid the bills.
I always dreamed the maybe one day there would be a Backroads Festival. I'm a long way from that, but I have reused the logo and the sentiments for this little house concert enterprise.