Klarinet Archive - Posting 000115.txt from 2007/06

From: Tim Roberts <timr@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Re: Community groups - membership fee?
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 18:33:56 -0400

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:49:35 -0400, Glenn Kantor <klarinet@-----.net>
> Your help please -
>
> Does the community band or orchestra you play in have a membership fee for
> joining and/or a yearly dues fee?
>
> If so - how much?
>
> One of our local groups is thinking of instituting a nominal yearly fee for
> playing and would like to know what other similar groups are doing.

A much better place to ask this question is the Community Music mailing
list at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/c-m/.

We in the Tualatin Valley Community Band have never charged an annual
fee, although I certainly know of a number of groups that do so.

As to why a community group would need to charge a fee, I'm surprised at
the question. Music is expensive. The typical band score is about $90,
and unless you are fortunate enough to be able to sponge off of a school
music library, you have to buy everything. Liability insurance costs us
$500 a year, and the local venues will not book us without it. Renting
the local high school auditorium for a performance now costs us about
$600. Posters and flyers aren't free, either.

We were fortunate enough to learn of an arts grant available from our
city government (Tigard, Oregon), and that has enabled us to remain
dues-free.

--
Tim Roberts, timr@-----.com
Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.

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