Klarinet Archive - Posting 000260.txt from 2006/02

From: "George Huba" <ghuba@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] The clarinet - Everywhere!
Date: Sat, 18 Feb 2006 14:07:02 -0500


-----Original Message-----
From: Forest E Aten [mailto:forestaten@-----.net]
Sent: Saturday, February 18, 2006 7:46 AM
To: klarinet@-----.org
Subject: RE: [kl] The clarinet - Everywhere!
I work often with Buffet and I do NOT have access to discounted equipment.
Maybe some players do....but not very many...indeed.

=====

One thing I have been curious about for a long time is the fees (huge or
miniscule) that clarinet manufacturers, reed, mouthpiece companies, etc.,
pay to individuals who endorse their products. While I understand that most
of these contracts will not be public information, I am guessing some of
those on this list will have some idea how these endorsements work, even if
they are not personally participating heavily themselves.

A few questions...

Are major "stars" and "semi-stars" whose pictures end up in full page ads in
The Clarinet and the catalogs of merchants such as WWBW and others paid in
the hundreds of dollars per year, thousands of dollars per year, tens of
thousands of dollars per year, discounted or free equipment, or some other
way (such as support for their orchestras) for their endorsements? Do the
employers of major clarinetists (specifically orchestras) participate
financially in the endorsements of their members if the employer (usually an
incorporated not-for-profit entity receiving public support through tax
dollars) is mentioned in the ads (as for instance when the principal or
member of an orchestra in Philadelphia or New York or Boston or Chicago or
Los Angeles) is identified in the advertisement as a member of that
organization, thus using the orchestra as a stamp-of-approval or quality?

Are the larger fees paid only to a very small number of the endorsers with
the majority receiving much more modest fees? What percentage of the
endorsers get what percentage of the fees (such as for instance in a "star"
system where 3% of the endorsers account for 90% of the fees paid)?

Is it common or typical for a "star" or "semi-star" whose name appears on a
piece of equipment (such as a mouthpiece or ligature or even a full
clarinet) sold by a company they do not own to be getting a percentage of
the sales or just a flat endorsement fee?

George

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