Bringing back the tradition of the Victorian parlour piano

[Ginevra House]

Hello. This is partly a discussion, partly an invitation. I started up a group a year ago called Maestro in My Living Room, inspired by some amazing performances in friends' living rooms. (I've just added this group to MusBook, so you can join using the Groups links on the right).

The group aims to bring back the tradition of live entertainment at home, which has all but died out in the face of mediated, commercialised entertainment you can buy in the shops or tune into on TV and radio. It's a chance for musicians and people with big living rooms to network with each other and arrange concerts in the intimate setting of home.

There are no rules - concerts can be public or private, paid or unpaid, pro or amateur. Members are encouraged to post pics, audio and video of living room performances, and to blog about any events.

However, I want to move things on and organise a series of home concerts for the public in beautiful London houses, much like the Open Gardens festival where individuals and organisations with gorgeous gardens open them up to the public for a day, or the Darbar tradition in India where private individuals hold public concerts in their houses.

Does anyone have any idea of how I should start going about this, or even better want to get involved, as musician, house owner or organiser? You could join me in planning a concert series for London, or start one in your own town or city.

Ginevra

[Zubb]

cool! I'd be well up for this!!
if there's anything going on in London let me know. i would love to come
have joined the group
Z

[Florestan]

Fantastic idea. Not just a Victorian tradition, of course. We went to the Greenwich Early Music Festival in November, which demonstrates handsomely that a great many people are making their own music purely for enjoyment. It is a wonderful event.

Arguably the tradition of making music in the home as a mainstream pastime died out with the advent of the classical era. Before then, composers such as Telemann published works specifically to this end (Tafelmusik). Only the other day we were discussing what would be the modern day equivalent of this. Perhaps we need a Tafelmusik movement for the 21st century. It certainly fits in with the zeitgeist, especially the widespread rejection of empty consumption in favour of creativity, ie personal production.

[Simon Hewitt Jones]

Hi, Simon HJ here (violinist & creative director of MusBook)

This sounds like a really fantastic idea to all of us here. It's quite similar to the vision behind Music and the City (MATC), (http://www.musicandthecity.org/ - new website coming shortly), the professional & amateur soiree/concert evening that I'm the artistic director of. Except of course, what you're describing would be in private homes!

I really believe that it's about time for a new movement, a new awareness of music that derives from the same spirit that drove Tafelmusik, yet with a strong understanding of the demands of our contemporary culture. Why? Because it would be a driving force behind a broader change in culture away from the consumerist excesses that have led to the current world crises, by inspiring creativity and social values that are less materialist, and lend themselves to a more responsible form of capitalism.

What we've found striking with MATC is how many people come who are professionals in other fields, such as city workers (or, ahem, ex-city workers!!), and relay to us that artistic culture is almost completely separate from the devoid-of-humanity markets that they spend their days dealing with. You would have thought that business of all things would need creative thinking of the best kind... Why have so many aspects of our commercial sectors been divided completely from the need for sensitivity and social responsibility? I think a lot of it comes down to blind ignorance of the nuance and subtlety of creative thought and lasting, long-term values etc.

Florestan says it perfectly: "a widespread rejection of empty consumption in favour of creativity, ie personal production."

This all fits in beautifully with the movement towards creativity in education (see the incredible talk by Sir Ken Robinson that we've posted on what will be our 'conservatoire sans frontieres'.... click the 'education' tab above)... an entire inversion of world educational systems is what is needed to ensure that new generations are being educated for a creative-skills-led future. That means music, visual arts, dance and drama need to take centre stage in education, alongside core skills such as literacy and numeracy.

Interweaving live music into the home is a guaranteed way to sow the seeds of awareness that are necessary to start the snowball of change!

Ginevra, although I will have to run this past my colleagues, I'm sure MusBook would be very happy to support any grassroots effort such as this in any way we can. These forums would be a great place to begin to make such an initiative happen. I'm sure Brightcecilia and other enlightened networks will support in a similar way?

So... Can we start a grassroots movement? What would it involve? What would be the aim? What tools would we need? (If we can identify what's necessary, we might be able to use MusBook's resources to help solve any practical problems).

Food for thought............
S

PS Ginevra, can you tell us more about what the Darbar tradition is?

[sam saunders]

Hi! This is a terrific idea! I will think about this and see if i get any ideas as to how to move forward. Certainly there are folks who would be delighted to have music making in their homes.I do know someone who got Lucy Skeaping and her band round for a concert at home...They are pros ,of course,but people could equally have friends round .Just thinking......would you need to get someone to host and others to go round and play?Not sure how would be the best way to recruit houses and people.Maybe advertise in suitable places. Perhaps in small concert venues? Music groups, concert promoters.I should think that finding one person to host would get the whole thing rolling..
Patent the idea in a hurry!!!
Best ,Sam