Jess Morgan goes back to basics

Bergen has become a home-from-home for Jess

Local singer-songwriter and BBC Introducing favourite Jess Morgan spent May 2009 touring in Norway.

From eccentrically decorated clubs to intimate gigs, Jess experienced all that is good about music.

But it was the unlikely venue of a one-bedroom flat in Bergen with a handful of guests in the audience that really sparked her imagination.

Going back to basics made her realise what it is about music that hooked her in and inspired her.

The first leg of my Norwegian tour saw me arrive at around midnight in Bergen, right into the heart of Cafe Opera's 'Naked' jam night.

Everything gets started pretty late here and good music prevails until the wee small hours.

Cafe Opera has become a home-from-home for me and playing gigs there is always a welcome experience, as were the gigs that followed...

Lille Lungards-Sang - an Americana/folk club-night that comes together sporadically above a Thai Restaurant, and Scene Vest at Vagen Fetevare - a warren of a place, eccentric in its decoration that wouldn't look out of place in Norwich's Art-Skool quarter.

Bergen in Norway has a vibrant and eclectic music scene

Capping off the first week of what was a fantastic string of shows in Bergen, there was a house-concert in my host's tiny one bedroom flat with a hand-picked audience of musicians and friends. All with plus one privileges of course!

The set-up was as frill-free as could be. Performers had the luxury of a comfy sofa to perch on while guests made do with floor cushions and a borrowed mattress. We had a volunteer with a video camera in one corner and some ever-classy boxes of wine in another.

For me this was a truly liberating experience. Performing to an audience without microphones in your face, or the unavoidable affectedness that comes with being on stage, was great.

Sets were kept short and were punctuated with guest musicians on fiddles, guitars and even an Indian sitar coming in for a piece of the action.

After a well needed refreshment and cigarette break, a second set and three encores, it was all wrapped up.

Let's face it, music as an art-form has become incredibly devalued in recent times. Finding a paid gig these days is like trying to find Willy Wonka's final Golden ticket.

House gigs are great, but they can be a nightmare the next day!

Greedy would-be promoters are the only ones who reap any kind of benefit from live music, just for setting up a cheap mic and a tin-can PA in a dingy bar.

From what I've seen at my first house concert, it takes little more than a good group of music-lovers, some cushions and a few refreshments to put on a spectacular show in the comfort of your own home.

As long as you have a strong belief in yourself, or an artist you know, you have the power to encourage a performance from them that you may never have seen or heard before.

Sure, the flat looked like a bombsite the following morning and cleaning up isn't easy when you've got a thumping head and no milk for a proper builder's tea, but its a small sacrifice for an amazing and free night.

Jess Morgan will be playing at the BBC Norfolk Introducing gig at The Curve in The Forum, Norwich, on Friday, 10 July, 2009, where she will be releasing her new EP.