"Big B up on the Spree" sang Seeed about our capital. Germany's largest metropolis is a true mecca for live music fans, art and creatives and attracts many artists. From Reinhard Mey to Peter Fox to younger bands like Von Wegen Lisbeth – many famous musicians have their roots in Berlin. But every chart-topper once started as an unknown musician in a rehearsal room. At your own house concert in Berlin, you can discover new talent before they play on the big stages in Berlin and surrounding areas!
Find artists in BerlinBerlin's reputation abroad is built on clubs and techno, which undersells it badly. The city carries one of Europe's largest populations of working musicians, drawn over decades by space and relative affordability, and the songwriter, jazz and classical scenes are enormous. Kreuzberg and Neukölln hold the independent end, Prenzlauer Berg and Mitte the more established one, and on any given night you can find music in a backyard, a gallery, a church and a basement within a few streets of each other.
It is also where the German Wohnzimmerkonzert took hold, and the housing explains a lot of that. Berlin's Altbau flats - high ceilings, wooden floors, big connecting rooms - sound superb with nothing more than a guitar and a voice. Hosts here often know an artist personally, or know somebody who does, and a Berlin living room with thirty people in it is one of the best rooms a touring act will play all year.
A living room concert is exactly what it sounds like: a professional musician plays a full set in a private home, for an audience the host has invited. You will see the same thing called a house concert, a house show or - because of where we started - a SofaConcert. They all mean the same evening.
There is no stage, no ticket desk and no support act. A typical concert in Berlin runs 60 to 90 minutes, often split into two sets with a break, in front of anywhere from 15 to 50 guests. Most take place in an Altbau flat with high ceilings, a Hinterhof or a studio space. The artist brings whatever they need; you provide the room and the people.
Everything you need to plan, folded into the order you'll actually do it.
Pick a date and a room - thirty people fit a living room more easily than you'd think. Then browse the artist list for a singer-songwriter, duo or band.
Send as many free enquiries as you like. Each artist replies with a non-binding offer, so you can weigh up a few before choosing. Settle the scope in writing in the booking system - that written record is what the contract is based on.
Confirming creates the contract and reserves your date. You deposit the fee plus the booking fee, which is held in trust and only released to the artist after the concert. You then get their contact details to sort out the last bits.
Browse Berlin and Germany-based acts, send free enquiries and book the one that fits your evening.
A few of the acts playing around Berlin.
List your space for free and touring artists apply to play your living room. You pick whoever you like the sound of, and you're never obliged to say yes - here is what hosting involves.
You would be joining people all over Europe who open their doors a few times a year and have turned their living room into somebody's favourite venue.
Some of the most recent spaces to join.
The choice can feel overwhelming. Don't worry - we'll help you.
Tell us the details of your concert and any particular wishes, and we'll do the rest.