wedding question

imma_star · Regular Member Joined: 28 Mar 2002 Posts: 29 Location: usa

I didn't know if this is the right place to post this, but my question is: I was asked to play at a wedding in late August. I don't really know the people who are getting married; they heard of me somehow. I'm playing three songs- Ave Maria during the lighting of the unity candle, trumpet voluntary during the recessional, and one more they haven't picked out yet. My question is how much should I be paid- they said it's up to me and since I've never played at a wedding before, how much is appropriate?

SHS_Trumpet · Posted: Sat Aug 03, 2002 9:57 am Post subject:

175 seems to be a standard rate around here. Just don't flub or they get pretty testy......
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Andrew Fowler
MYNWA
"90% of trumpet music is below high C"

dwm1129 · Posted: Sat Aug 03, 2002 10:52 am Post subject:

there is another thread around here addressing the same topic.

walter · Posted: Sat Aug 03, 2002 4:17 pm Post subject:

[ This Message was edited by: walter on 2002-09-20 09:55 ]

sfenick · Regular Member Joined: 14 Jun 2002 Posts: 36

I charge $150 to walk in the door. For this amount, I perform the processional and recessional. Any additional music is extra, and depends on the amount of time I will have to spend working on the piece in question. If it something I can readily play with little practice, I will typically charge $25 extra. If it is something extremely difficult, like Brandenburg 2, I would charge upwards of $500 extra (though I have never been asked to do that). I would suggest you ask around, and find out what other trumpeters in your area charge......then charge somewhere in that ballpark.
Steve Fenick

walter · Posted: Sun Aug 04, 2002 8:28 pm Post subject:

[ This Message was edited by: walter on 2002-09-20 09:55 ]

pair of kings · Posted: Sun Aug 04, 2002 9:36 pm Post subject:

My fee is for the service, not by the piece. Sometimes they don't want to have the trumpet heard before the processional. others want a couple pieces in the prelude or for the seating of the mothers. If they ask for too much I will tell them. but I wouldn't think of charging extra for an additional piece of music. I don't think I have ever been paid for any live gig on a per piece basis.

sfenick · Regular Member Joined: 14 Jun 2002 Posts: 36

I should exlain the reason I charge per piece.....I don't want people to request the extra music. I am simply so busy right now that I would rather do just the processional and recessional, and the trend here is for people to just want that. As for Brandenburg....I was using that as an example, I have never had anyone ask for that at a wedding, as I indicated in the post. I could perform it if asked, but I sincerely doubt I would ever be asked to do so (at least at a wedding). Finally, to address the last question, there are plenty of capable trumpeters here. I charge a lot because my time is very limited, and therefore very valuable. So far as I know, I am the only person in my area that charges extra for extra music (that is, by the piece). My fee of $150 is pretty standard for the professional level players around here. Also, the trend here is the same as Pair of Kings mentioned.....most everyone seems to want no trumpet before the processional. As a matter of fact, I usually don't play at all until the bride comes in, so as to draw extra attention to her procession.
Thank you,
Steve

[ This Message was edited by: sfenick on 2002-08-05 00:49 ]

dwm1129 · Posted: Sun Aug 04, 2002 10:10 pm Post subject:

I played a wedding yesterday and my fee was $200 all I had to play was the first 8 bars of trumpet voluntary and I left, thats all they wanted. I have played many,many weddings and have never played before the bride walked down....The only time I will ever charge extra is if they want an extra rehersal besides the rehersal wedding on friday. My standard fee is $175. But this weekend the father of the bride gave me $200 in cash on friday, so I wasn't going to argue.

Just stick to a set fee.....having a trumpet player is a luxuary, either you can a afford it or you can't...you have practiced hard enough to reach the point you have, don't short yourself, stick to your set fee. If they only want to pay you $50 bucks, they can find someone who is worth $50 bucks...charge what you are worth.

redface · Posted: Thu Aug 08, 2002 4:37 am Post subject:

You can get away with charging LOADS!!!
Think of it this way - people spend thousands ona wedding - The average wedding cost here in the UK is £13,000 which is about $22,000. If they spend $2000 on flowers for the church service, who's gonna care if they give $750 to the trumpet player. So basically it depends on how much you think they are spending for the whole thing, and charge maybe 1/25th of that. But you better be damn good.....

donalson · Posted: Tue Sep 17, 2002 2:04 am Post subject:

ya the average wedding cost a lot now days... my wedding on the other hand was in the area of around $5000 or less... it was by no means a small weding though, i think we had around 200-300 people (which i guess wouldn't make it a big wedding either) we had something like 7 or so groomsmen/bridesmaides

we where very budget concious (SP?) when doing the wedding, for instance my wifes grand-mother made her wedding dress (she was a profesional seamstres at one point) my mother made the cake (again my mom was a profesional cake decorator for a few years... she always promised she'd doing my wedding cake

anyway for the trumpet player i was at the time a music student at the local college, he was a friend of mine from some time in HS... he had retired a few years prior from the army band... i asked him to play... we never even discusted $$$ he played a fanfare on the processional, and played the recessional... i belive we payed him $75 for his time.

i guess cost varries a lot by where you are and who you know

... if i where asked to play i would prob charge the lower cost of around the $75 because i wouldn't feel right asking for more, i'd also end up doing a lot of practice to get it to where i was happy w/ the results... which would be much higher then those at the wedding would expect i might add... it's who i am, if i must do something i'm going to over do it (at least if my heart is in it)

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mark aka donalson
Play it with a passion