JoeWats

Hi Everyone,

I hope you are having or have had a wonderful Easter. My ZeuS G Bb and I were part of our Church's Easter Program today.

Joe

Reverend

Yes, I hope that everyone had a happy Easter too!

Joe, what music did you play?

Blessings,

__________________
Michael Guevara, DMM
Cinco Ranch Conservatory of Music
www.cincoranchmusic.com
Golden Trumpet Ministries
Authorized Stage 1 and Fides Dealer, Texas and Southern US

JoeWats

I played "Christ The Lord Is Risen Today" and our Hymn of Invitation was
"The Strife is O'er".


Very pretty arrangements ...

My oldest daughter also was an Acolyte for the Easter Service.

JW

gzent

Played a bunch of stuff for my own church on the Vigil, for free, of course, and played 3 pieces at a different church on Sunday for $.

Well, what do you guys think, do you feel OK taking money to play at another church on Christmas or Easter? Sometimes I wonder...

Greg

__________________
Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revalation
And the mind's true liberation

Tootsall

Our little ensemble "did a gig" once for a church Christmas dinner. We had a token honorarium pressed upon us in spite of having told them in advance that we'd "play for our supper". We finally accepted only if they allowed us to donate half of it to the Salvation Army kettle and spent the other half on new music. And that's what happened. I have no problem with it. Don't know how I'd handle being offered an honorarium for playing a Service, however.

gzent

Ed,

One of the reasons I do accept payment for playing at churches other than my own is that I want to be fair to other musicians in the area. That is, if I play free or even less than the going rate then people may want to pay less to other players doing similar gigs and I certainly don't want to infringe on what others are getting paid, if you know what I mean.

Greg

__________________
Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revalation
And the mind's true liberation

Tootsall

Understood, Greg. You have a different marketplace from ours. In my "neck of the woods", most of the smaller churches do not "contract services" of professional or even semi-professional musicians. We're the largest "municipal" district within a radius of about 120 miles and we've got a pop. of 70,000 so there isn't a lot of "supply" with which to fill the "demand". We volunteered to do this "job" (no different from volunteering to help out at a variety night to support, say.. a family crisis shelter) and did not go into it expecting any kind of payment.

I guess it's just a different aspect of culture out here on the prairie (barn raisings, food banks, etc.). But I'm sure not saying that I believe that musicians should volunteer their services.... if they collect an honorarium that's cool and I sure do understand the importance of maintaining a certain "value level" for a musician's services. Us? We're just a bunch of amateurs who got "volunteered" by one of our wives to help out at a church dinner.

Reckon I'm saying "do what your heart and common sense having given adequate consideration to the specifics of the situation" dictate to you.

dcstep

Greg, when you play at your own church, consider taking the money that they would normally pay and then giving it back as an offering. This keeps the money in the music director's budget (in case you're not available in the future) and reduces the church's net cost. (Of course, give whatever tithe or offering you would normally make. This is on top of that, not instead of.) The minister of music at my church asked me to direct the funds to the organ fund when I told him what I'd be doing on Easter. (You don't have to tell anyone, of course, but it might get you invited more often).

I've been doing this with churches, some community theatres and non-profits that invite to play along with pros and other semi-pros. The pros end up recommending me for gigs they don't cover, I have a good time, and the budgets don't get out of wack.

Ed, I used to get paid a bunch in a city of 80,000 (Midland) in West Texas. Fifteen years ago, the churches were paying $100 to $150 and the community theartre was around $100 per show (I was paid as little as $50 by a church in McKinney, but it was part of a pretty large brass choir). Most medium and large churches here in Dallas pay and the theatre groups vary. Anyway, I think it's partly cultural differences, like rural vs. urban. Also, it gives the music director some "control" over the situation. (Having to "accept" church members despite a lack of talent can be disconcerting, particularly when it comes to raucous trumpeters).

Dave

__________________
Schilke '60 B1
Selmer Paris -- '57 #20 K-Modified/
'03 Concept TT w/ GR66.8B2.8
'94 Lawler TL cornet w/ Sparx 2B
Conn Vintage One flugel - GR66FD
www.pitpops.com www.ucm-inc.com
Rocky Mountain Trumpet Fest

Zeusfan

I can see both sides of the arguments here. However, the pastor gets his money, the music minister collects, as due several other vital roles in the church. Why would you not feel obligated to get paid? That is the way most of us make a living. If you feel strongly about not getting paid, collect the check and give it all back or tithe 10% back to the church you are participating in. I will only play in my home church for free and they usually pay me.

It's not that I don't want to serve the Lord with a talent that he has given me for free. He his given me the talent so that I can glorify Him and feed my family.

I think some of you are missing the point. Do you magnify the Lord while sitting in the orchestra pit? or do you preach "Christ crucified" while playing with the combo at your local jazz club? Are you a living testimony of the glorious love of Christ Jesus during intermission or perhaps during warm-up with your band mates? Do you dedicate every note you play to Jesus? Dare I ask you about other aspects of your life?

Maybe when you can answer all of those questions with a "YES", you can worry about getting paid for a Christmas or Easter gig.

__________________
Zeus Dealer (www.zacharymusic.com)

Zeus Olympus
Zeus Guarnerius "C"
Zeus Guarnerius "Bb"
2 antique Bach 37's hanging on the wall as decoration

MUSICandCHARACTER

My wife is a pastor and I am the music director at our church. Paying musicians has long been a tough question. We ask choir members to sing for "free" but pay the organist or piano player. The music director is paid, but many tasks in the church are done by the congregation for free.

In our last church, the Senior Pastor (my wife was the Associate back then) had an income from his family business. He refused to take raises because he didn't need the money. This sounds right, but was a huge mistake.

First, you must pay the Senior Pastor more than the rest of the staff. Therefore my wife got meager or no raises on those years. That is OK (I guess) when in the service of the church. BUT .... when she left and he retired, the church found out that they were underpaying each of them by about a total of $50K. The church, to keep the same staffing they had before, had to come up with an addition $50,000 in one year.

Now had the raises been coming every year like they should have, the church would have been used to paying its staff and if the budget wasn't met, the programs would have to have been looked at!

Now this same pastor decided to takes his raises towards the end because I told him that a disaster was waiting (unfortunately, I was right) and he did and then put much of his wages back in the offering plate. Another disaster. The church was used to him giving $30K+ a year (remember he had family money) and when he retired they had to spend $50K more and had $30K less in the offering each year.

The "generosity" of this well-meaning pastor cost the church $80,000 at his retirement. Whoa! What he should have done was taken the money in the form of responsible raises as a gift from God even if he didn't need it and give it to a different ministry other than his church.

Sometimes, you are actually doing the church a favor by taking the money. They would have to hire someone. And if you give it back in the plate, then when you are not there they get the double whammy. The church pays those who share their talents -- take the money humbly and thankfully. If you wish to give it, give it to a different ministry.

M&C

__________________
Dr. Jim Fox
Licensed Mental Health Therapist
Mouthpiece chart: www.ibowtie.com/tmptmpccharts.html