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I continue to be amazed...


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OK, I am a small-time sound guy who works mostly with local acoustic groups.  I have done festivals, weddings, parties, and regular acoustic performances.  I continue to be amazed that event co-ordinators find it acceptable to ask the sound guy to provide equipment and services for free. 

I did a local festival last Spring for a group that I had worked for in previous years.  This year they decided they had not made enough money on last years festival and wanted my input at their planning meetings on how they could save money on the entertainment.  Making a long story shorter, I attended all their meetings and made suggestions; the end result was, they decided to pay the entertainers but use another sound guy who was willing to volunteer his equipment and services.  This of course was not my advice to them.  Somewhat disgusted, I essentially washed my hands of any further involvement with the festival.  At 9:30Am on the morning of the event they called and asked if I could bring some equipment and help the volunteer sound guy who was somewhat overwhelmed. I said yes, but not for free.  I helped out and got paid.  In a post-mortum meeting the organizers agreed that I was correct when I had advised them not to take this route if they wanted a professional outcome.

Next page; I got a call this morning from a different local festival organizer wanting me to step in at the last minute to provide sound for their two-day festival.  It seems that the sound guy they had arranged for cancelled out and they were in a pinch.  Here's the corker; the entertainment was getting paid at their pre-agreed rate, but the organizer said "we don't know how much money will be left" so we can't agree on a fee for sound.  I interpreted this as meaning "there's a good chance you will not get paid".  Apparently they found nothing wrong with asking me to provide equipment and services for free.  I said no, I am no longer a rookie and I don't do two-day events for free.

As my title says, I continue to be amazed that event co-ordinators have the audacity to expect a professional sound guy to provide equipment and services for free.  Anyone out there have similiar experiences?

 

One Dude

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There is no shortage of folks who will gladly treat you as if your time is free, if you are willing to let them.

 

I'll volunteer my time and equipment for the occasional fund raiser/good cause IF time allows, but am otherwise pretty firm on establishing contract terms early in any discussion, and follow it up in writing. I found out early on that its called the music "business" for a reason and if the other party doesn't have respect for that, its a lot more likely to become a goat rodeo that won't be worth being associated with. This applies to most business relationships, not just running sound.

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Yeah, I get this a lot with my sound work as well. I used to be a professional photographer, doing staff work with some local sports teams. I didn't do weddings, portraits or any of that stuff, but I would get requests all the time.

 

Hey can you shoot my wedding? You get dinner and drinks, free! They thought it was a great deal, but would reel back in total shock once I'd quote them my price. Really? That much, just to take some pictures? Well my fiance's nephew said he'd do it for $40... get him to do it then, I'm not interested.

 

One of my relatives was getting married and asked me to shoot their wedding, I offered them a one-time super-discount rate but they turned it down. They found another photog who would do it cheaper... fine. I was invited to the wedding anyways, so I met the photog they hired. She literally took all the photos with her iPhone... and missed cutting the cake because she was too busy telling me about her fine art photography.

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I'm seeing more and more of this as the "me generation" comes of age. It's easy once you realize that the world revolves around them. I've been part of a fund raiser for a nonprofit for abot 20 years. Local businesses support this by supplying members of their management as organizers. This year I was hit with the "donate your services" question. Mind you this is in my hometown and is about 75 miles away from where I currently live. I explained that at about 12 mpg I'm over $50 in gas alone and they were free to find someone that was willng to donate their time and effort. Then  mentioned that the idea was to increase the profits on the event from year to year. Bigtime change in attitude when he realized that the outcome of the event would reflect upon him. Mind you we had left somewhere in the neighborhood of $4,500 in seed money from the year before. Thisis the organization that I make a sizeable cash donation to every year.

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I too am beyond free. All free gets you is more free work. My band has on occasion (once since I've been a part in 4 years) played a free gig. It was for a friend of the band who had passed away. In that case it was an honor.

 

I've been in preliminary talks to provide sound & lights for a fundraiser. We haven't gotten down to brass tacks yet. I do know they are charging $60/plate for the meal and dance. I also know if they think I'm doing it for free, they're in for a surprise.

 

My normal rate at that venue for lights & sound is $900. I might knock off $100, or donate $100 back to the cause, but that's about it. I don't know the cause or the performer. I know the performer would be happy with what I do, judging from pics on his website from other events.

 

So time will tell. This week I'll make the effort to get across my point, with a contract that will lock the date. ($200 deposit)

 

I'll be programming lights this week to get ready for the event. If they want anything less, I'll just take a pass, maybe pay the $60 to support the cause and see who they get instead.

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I got a call to play in a band at this event in September. The money was not great but the people in the band are stellar so I said okay - being that it was a Sunday. Then I got asked to provide the PA. I was told that I wouldn't need to bring much, and could I provide a quote. Now I should mention that there are about three bands playing and that they are all pro musicians, who have toured the world and blah, blah, blah, and will want something relatively decent - even though it's in a small two hundred seat restaurant.

I knew that there was no money, so I said I would match Long & McQuade's prices, which are the lowest rental rates in North America AFAIK. They countered with - how's $25.00 for the whole PA!!! I was literally speechless. I was thinking along the lines of 2 x U15, a 720P and two or three powered monitors with Mixwiz... But for that price I guess I could bring my 100 watt mixer, two 8" speakers and a mic and stand.

I don't get it. I really don't get it.

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No kidding.

 

There's was a biker toy run this weekend. My band has played the event a few years in a row. They've gone with a different band last year and this year.

 

A buddy called and asked if they could rent a power amp. I got the guys number and offered him an ATA racked IPR1600, for $40. He could give it to my buddy after and my buddy could bring it back to me.

 

He kinda hummed and hawed and offered $25. Do I said sorry, I'm cool at $40, but just not interested for $25. Honestly I don't know the guy from Adam. They played the gig last year, so they should have know what they needed.

 

I seen a couple pics and it was an SOS kinda deal. So I think I might have dodged a bullet on that one. I'm not a rental company and yeah, won't become one.

 

One less headache.

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Sure I get asked...............(religious groups are famous for this)

That's usualy where it ends. If it's something my heart's into, I might help out but I make sure no one expects me to have my "game on" for free. If it's no fun, I'll leave.

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I got rooked into providing sound on a Sunday morning for a Sat/Sun gig I was providing for last year. Religious group.

 

There was a pancake breakfast going on, on the Sunday. They wanted a 9am start. Blindsided me, the organizer didn't know anything about it. I begrudgeingly did it, but that's my fault. I let the organizers know the next year to tell the church group it would be a $300 extra, since I'd be there an hour before they needed to start, and an hour after. $100/hr, 3 hour minimum.

 

I felt like sending them an invoice but I never did.

 

Funny, they didn't ask to play this year for the $300.

 

They tried to pull the sane stunt at out bigger festival. (5000 in attendance) my buddy was one of them. "Oh, we'd play for free, at 9am" I told him it was 3am before the site was officially packed up for the night, and again, with at least an hour prep, or more which adds up to 7am, it's not a money issue. It's a manpower issue. The guys aren't going to be interested in 4 hours of sleep to run sound for free, so the official response from me was it's not going to happen.

 

The church people do put on a small weekend thing, all the bands play "pro bono" I thankfully haven't been approached. I'd let them know unfortunately I am a For Profit Organization. An outdoor thing like that would run them $1200/day.

 

 

 

Lol autocorrect tried to change "rooked" into "fooled"

 

 

How fitting.

 

;)

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Don't do the free thing.  

I'm virtually certain that the food and alcohol vendors as these charity events are doing them for free.   So why should the bands or the sound?

My band has been paid very well to play some charity events that went on to raise very good money for their wonderful causes.   That's as it should be.    When they are charging big money for people to donate to a cause, those people expect good food and good entertainment.    It's a win/win for everyone.   We don't do them for free or even discounted rates anymore.  In my view, what we offer is part of the draw that helps people feel good about the money they spent on the charity.

It shouldn't be any different for the sound/lighting providers.

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