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Here's a little something from the “I saw it on the Internet so it must be true" file. PRS for Music, a UK Performance Rights Society, recently commissioned a study by CGA Strategy. CGA, according to their web site, is a leader in “market intelligence” for retailers of Pubs, Bars, and Drinks Brand owners supplying the On Trade in Great Britain. The research targeted around 500 venues (Pubs) over a broad geographical area with most (96%) having performance area capacities of 250 patrons or fewer – mostly modest size establishments. Their goal was to determine if there were any notable economic advantages to establishments offering music compared to similar establishments that do not offer music. Among their findings were the following:
On a less fortunate note, Pubs budget approximately the same amount of money per month for music whether presenting live music or a DJ/Disco. (Perhaps I should have hung on to my old turntable?) If you like to look at color pie charts and have a more “in depth” look at the information, set your browser to prsformusic.com and enter CGA in the search box. We Be Jammin' April is Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM). What remains of the Music Performance Fund is setting aside money to specifically help finance JAM projects during April. MPF will provide up to 50% co-funding on qualifying projects. MPF is particularly fond of school and educational projects, but other types of projects will also be considered. Jazz group leaders, start your engines and contact Patty, MPF Administrator, in our office for more information. Odds and Ends You should have received a letter early in December informing you that members now have, in addition to the regular death benefit, an additional $2,500.00 in accidental death and dismemberment insurance. I wish to reiterate and emphasize what was stated in the letter. Members will be covered by this policy for the next two years whether or not you return the card that was enclosed with the letter. Be aware that if you return the card, you will receive a call regarding the possible purchase of additional insurance products – ‘nuff said. Regular member dues are payable by the end of January. They remain at the amazingly low, low price of $160.00, or $82.00 for semi-annual dues. Life member annual dues for 2010 are holding at $92.00, or $46.00 for the half-year. Unfortunately, because of some inadvertent errant envelope stuffing, some Life members received a dues notice that was intended for Regular members. We do apologize for the inconvenience this caused several members, and please know that everyone in the office was forced to “drop down and do 20 push-ups” - myself included. I actually did those “girl” push-ups where you're on your knees, but none the less we will all… Keep Practicing! |
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The Young Musicians Scholarship Fund (YMSF), previously administered by the Twin Cities Musicians Union, has become an independent non-profit entity that will now allow 2010 contributors to deduct their contributions from their taxes. It is our hope that this change will motivate our already generous members (and nonmember friends) to increasingly significant contributions, and also create opportunities to explore new sources of funding. If you don’t already know, The Young Musicians Scholarship Fund provides financial assistance in the form of grants to help young musicians attend summer music schools and camps. The Fund has already provided more than $46,000.00 to area music students over the past 15 years thanks to your contributions. While you deliberate on the plethora of worthy organizations that seek your generosity, keep in mind that the YMSF is local, green (though I’m not sure how, but this is a very current, hip buzz word), and most importantly, distributes all of the money collected to young musicians. Remember, please do not try and nick your poor Uncle Sam for a tax break on 2009 or previous contributions to the Fund – only 2010 and future contributions. Local 30-73 Death Benefit The office has received many inquiries regarding the amount of the Local 30-73 Death Benefit. For most members the Death Benefit remains at $2,000.00. However, at the April 10, 2000 General Meeting action was taken to add the following language to Bylaw Article VIII – Death Benefits: “All current members are entitled to a Two Thousand Dollar ($2,000) benefit. All members joining, or reinstating more than one year following resignation, suspension, or expulsion after July 1, 2000 shall be entitled to a One Thousand Dollar ($1,000) benefit.” What has concerned some members is that in Duet, published under "Current Bills” in the "Board Meeting Minutes", the Death Benefit is always itemized as $1,000.00. The reason for this is that the Local insures with Union Labor Life for $1,000.00 and self-insures from the Local’s general funds for the remaining $1,000.00. We do not publish the members’ beneficiaries’ amount received from the insurance company as this expense is shown as the monthly premium payment to Union Labor Life. We will be adding a clarifying note to the "Current Bills" in future Board minutes; and of course you are always welcome to call the office if you have a concern. Membership Party 2010 Perhaps not quite as inevitable as the two previous topics (death and taxes), the coming of spring provides the cue for my prodding, cajoling, and otherwise encouraging readers to attend yet another gala Local 30-73 Membership Party. The Party will be held on Sunday April 25th at the Ramada Mall of America Hotel (formerly the Thunderbird). Social Hour will begin at noon with lunch served at 1:00 p.m. Nancy Svenddal’s Birchwood String Quartet will provide music for the social hour and lunch. After your meal, stick around and listen to the incredible “Mr. Smooth” himself, Irv Williams lead a group of Local 30-73’s finest. Get antsy just listening? Bring your instrument and “sit in” later in the afternoon as we reignite the Jam Session from previous years. Due to the date of the Party and Duet publishing schedules, this may be your only notice. So before you "wrap the fish" with this issue of Duet, make sure to send in your Party reservation printed elsewhere in this issue. I hope to see you there. Something Different The Local is required by some higher authority (I believe it’s the AFM Bylaws, but may well be the Department of Labor, the IRS, or perhaps even the Knights of the Templar) to provide every member with a copy of the Local’s Constitution/Bylaw/Price List book at least once every five years. This is the year we need to fulfill that obligation. In an effort to save several thousand dollars in printing and mailing costs over the course of the next two years, we will be combining the CBLPL book with a new Local 30-73 Membership/Instrument Directory. Historically we have published the Directory separately, and on a biennial basis – 2009 being the most recent printing. The 2010 combined book will replace the 2011 printing of the Membership Directory. The format of the new combined book will be 8? X 11. This may disappoint some that enjoyed the convenience of the smaller Directory, but this was done as both a cost saving measure and to avoid substantial formatting difficulties with the CBLPL portion of the book. The book will, however, still have the spiffy spiral binding. Very important - please update the office with any changes in your contact information by April 9, 2010. May you straddle the potholes of life and as always… Keep Practicing! |
The AFM recently concluded negotiations for a new Television and Radio Commercial Announcements Agreement a.k.a. the Jingle Agreement (subject to ratification by the bargaining unit). While this Agreement may not on the surface appear to impact many of our members, in fact, Local 30-73 is the fourth largest market for “jingle” recording among AFM Locals. True, there is a very large chasm between numbers three and four as measured in dollars, but our Local remains a vibrant nationally recognized area for the recording of commercial announcements thanks to your creativity and talent. The new agreement provides for wage increases from the current sidemusician session rates of $115.00 to $120.00 (from $230.00 to $240.00 for a solo musician or leader). Initial use fees will also increase to $34.00 and $68.00 (solo/leader). Cycle payments, the reason you want to avoid buyouts and record on an AFM contract, will also increase. Pension contributions will go from the current 12% to 12.48% on June 1, 2010 and 13.08% on April 1, 2011. A new set of shorter eight-week cycles has been added for Internet, New Media, and Non-Broadcast use. This aligns the AFM agreement more closely to that of SAG and AFTRA Agreements. Through my network of highly placed sources I learned that after much consternation, great caterwauling, and hours of heated discussion, it was also agreed that the name of the agreement should be changed. It will now simply be called the “Commercial Announcements Agreement” to reflect the reality that there are now more types of media available to advertise widgets than television and radio. By AFM standards, these negotiations came to a rapid conclusion. And in the current bargaining climate it’s great news to see some positive increases in wages and benefits – kudos to those involved. Not Exactly the British Empire but… Manifest Destiny was used to justify much of America’s 19th century expansion. Though this is not a term that has been routinely bandied about the office in reference to Local 30-73’s territory, perhaps we should reconsider. As of April 1, 2010 Local 30-73 accepted the AFM reassignment of Fargo, North Dakota Local 382’s jurisdiction. This means that Local 30-73’s jurisdiction now extends (non-continuously) from Houston county in southeastern Minnesota, to Kitson and Roseau counties in extreme northwestern Minnesota; and from Eau Claire in Wisconsin to the western borders of North Dakota (actually all of North Dakota if I counted counties correctly). The office is already busy organizing a Lewis and Clark style expedition in order to explore the new territories and search for members. By the next issue of Duet I hope that we will all be able to extend a warm, and more serious, welcome to our new North Dakota and northern Minnesota brothers and sisters. Providing services to such an extended geographical region will prove an interesting task. I appreciate the help that our AFM International Representative Wally Malone has provided throughout the process. I must now retire to the Local 30-73 “situation room” to review the vastness of our recent acquisition, and with Machiavellian cunning and precision plot our next “move”. And as soon as my enlarged cranium resumes its normal proportions, I will… Keep Practicing! |
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Just Sign Here, It’s a Standard Form…Honest. When is a gig a gig? Is there a point in time between the initial contact by phone or email and the actual completion of the work when one can be assured that there is a legally binding commitment? A commitment that the union can help you enforce should you have an improper cancellation, or do not receive payment for your services. While jobbing leaders are probably more likely to be able to secure a written contract than the average nightclub musician, there remains a "never-never- land" between the initial contact for work and the return of a signed legally binding contract. While Minnesota law does indeed support verbal agreements, there's nothing better than having something in writing to give your union a better chance for success when acting on your behalf. To that end, President Eggen has drafted some helpful language that leaders can use in an email or letter form to send to the purchaser immediately after terms of the performance have been accepted by both parties. This can be sent along with a contract, or by email prior to sending a contract. The document, which is printed elsewhere in this issue, is also available in the members’ area of the TCMU web site (after logging in click "Confirm Your Engagement"). Members can tweak the language according to their individual needs and stylistic approach – though use caution not to dilute the language to the extent that it is no longer useful. There is an additional benefit to having a written contract and filing it with the office prior to your engagements. Your Local maintains a Contract Guarantee Fund that will provide scale wages for your engagement while the union processes your nonpayment or inappropriate cancellation claim against a purchaser. Other strategies leaders might consider are simply asking the side musicians to “hold the date” until a clear commitment has been established, and sending out contracts with language that voids the contract if it has not been returned by a specific date. The latter may run the risk of losing an occasional gig to a well-intentioned but disorganized purchaser, but at least you know where you stand if the contract has not been returned within the specified time. Many leaders now also require a deposit on their jobs. This should hardly take any purchaser by surprise. Deposits are often required for catering, photographers, and hall rentals. On a related subject, when did contracts for nightclub work become rare as hen's teeth? It appears that musicians have been trained over the years to accept this as the way business is done. At the risk of sounding every bit as old as my aging bones, I’ll say in my best Walter Brennan like voice, “It wasn’t like that back when I was playing nightclubs.” I am aware that when I was playing nightclubs I played them for five or six nights a week often for several weeks or even months at a time. (I’d also go out for Brontosaurus Burgers after the gig in my Flintstone Mobile.) Things change. Nowadays a weekend at the same club is about as close to a steady engagement as nightclub work gets. However, when you show up at the club to play and the door is locked, or another band is already setting up on stage, or the owner “forgot to call” and let you know that they decided to go without music this week, wouldn’t it have been nice to have something in writing that confirmed the job. I can tell you that club owners do sign contracts with the national acts that play the Fine Line, Dakota Jazz Club, First Avenue, as well as other “club” venues. We have great local musicians. It’s unfortunate that the clubs do not give local musicians the same security of a signed contract that they do for “headliners”. Bottom line – the best way to help us help you is by memorializing your agreements in writing and filing your contracts with our office prior to the engagement. Now let us all sing from our hymnals – sermon over. Does Not Compute! Having been an Apple Macintosh guy since the midnineties, I found the following of interest: If, instead of purchasing an Apple Power Mac G3 233 Desktop Computer in 1997 I had invested that amount of money ($2,400.00) in Apple stock, that stock would today be worth $139,185.00. Musicians’ End of the World as We Know It! As seen on Criag’s List: “I am available to provide piano music for your event using my ipod. I have available most any piano selection you will need for your wedding, party, or small gathering at a price that is much less than a real piano player. You will be dazzled by hearing the best keyboard players. You will not have the burden of renting a piano. I will provide a hollow piano prop and wear a tux.” Now more than ever, I need to… Keep Practicing! |
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Sell Your Music on GoPro Tunes The AFM wants to help you sell your music. The AFM is currently in the process of collecting members’ recordings - including singles, EP’s, and/or full albums. Once they have assembled a diverse and extensive enough catalog of music, they will officially roll out the new AFM GoPro Tunes web site to the public. GoPro Tunes will sell your digital audio files in a manner similar to iTunes or Amazon MP3 only you will be able to set your own selling price - though I believe that the .99 default price will be the minimum allowed. More importantly however, you (or the group) will receive nearly 100% of the selling price. Credit card processing fees and other very modest “cost of business” fees will be deducted from sales. Bottom line, you’ll be getting a whole lot more “bang-for-the-buck” on GoPro Tunes. The agreement to sell your music on GoPro Tunes is non-exclusive. This means you can also continue to sell your music anywhere else you would like to both online and/or offline. In order to take advantage of this new AFM service your recording must be, or have been, done under an appropriate AFM Recording Agreement – which could be the SRLA, Limited Pressing, or even the new Joint Venture Recording Agreement. The JVRA is an extremely easy-to-use Agreement that can be used by any AFM members who are self-producing or collaborating on a recording project that does not have an “employer”, and where the musicians are in control over the material and the recording process. In other words, it’s your (or your group’s) own project and you weren’t “hired” by anyone. This Agreement is sans scales and benefits, however it does provide the opportunity to designate a percent of ownership for each musician involved in the project. For example, your 4-piece avant-garde hip-hop polka group Sock Monkeys decides to do a recording utilizing the JVRA. Upon completion of the genre-bending masterpieces you upload the music to GoPro Tunes and wait for the money to start rolling in. You and your bandmates have already determined under the JVRA that each musician has a 25% ownership in the recording. As sales skyrocket, each member of the group will receive 25% of the proceeds from the sales of Sock Monkey tunes. This will remain the case even if the group eventually breaks up due to “artistic differences”. AFM Freelance Services Technical Support Specialist Matt Plummer wrote an excellent article in the June 2010 International Musician about what “ducks” you need to get “in a row” in order to sell your music online. I suggest that you read/reread that article for more information on GoPro Tunes. Call the office for information on the Joint Venture Recording Agreement (..and for all you old hippies out there, no it’s not the pass the joint venture).
New AFM LS-1 Contract Shake, Rattle, and Rolex Keep Practicing! |
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As the greens of summer fade to autumnal shades of red and gold, another green fades from memory as of November 1, 2010. The green I refer to is the “green sheet,” or Music Performance Fund “green sheet” gig. A staple for many members for way more years than I have been fortunate enough to dwell in this office, the Music Performance Fund has been in “fade to black” mode for the last decade due to declining record/CD sales. The Music Performance Fund (formerly the Music Performance Trust Fund) was established as part of an effort to resolve the AFM recording strike in the 1940s. A small amount of money from the sale of every record, later CD, was designated to go to the Fund and used to present “free” live music performances as a way to offset the live music jobs lost to recordings – yes, even back then! As recently as 1982/83 69,500 concerts were presented throughout AFM land with the help of the Fund at a total cost of $23,233,000. With the advent of the Internet and music downloads the 2007/08-season saw a reduction to 7,501 concerts presented at a cost of $6,328,343. Merely two years later those numbers have been nearly halved again. As of September 2010 a meager $673,000 has been collected for the 2011/12 fiscal year. In an attempt to spread the remaining money as efficiently and in a cost effective manner as possible, beginning November 1, 2010 the Fund will no longer act as the employer of record for MPF jobs. This means no more “green sheets.” For any remaining future MPF performances, the Fund will pay the co-sponsor directly, and the co-sponsor will become responsible for paying the musicians and providing appropriate pension payments. I hope that by the time you are reading this (and I fully acknowledge what a presumption it is that anyone is reading this) the office will have more details on the new procedures. Follow Me…The 21st Century is Right This Way! You don’t have to stand behind too many people buying a two-dollar cup of coffee with a credit card to realize that a whole bunch of folks these days prefer paying for things with plastic rather than paper. That reality, coupled with ever more frequent requests from members to pay their dues with a credit card, has prompted a new feature in the members’ area of our web site. By the time you are reading this you should be able to log in to the members’ only area of tcmu.com and pay your dues with most any credit card, or use your existing PayPal account. Unfortunately, we will have to charge members who choose to pay this way a small additional service fee of $5.00 for annual dues and $3.00 for those paying semi-annual dues. This was the only way to recover the costs to the Local for providing this option. However, I am happy to inform you that annual dues will remain the same for 2011 for those who still prefer to pay by check or cash. Consequently, I’ll just have to defer the purchase of that jewel encrusted leather office chair (throne) that I’ve had my eye on. A Little Help From Our Friends While attending the recent MN State AFL-CIO Convention, I had the pleasure of speaking with Bobby Kasper, President of the Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation. When Mr. Kasper was in the process of seeking that office he visited the Local 30-73 office to ask for our support and gather information about our concerns. At that time I told him one of the things that occasionally gets under our collective skin is when “official” city functions, as well as Labor endorsed city officials use nonunion musicians for their events. As it turns out, President Kasper has an excellent memory and graciously took this concern to heart. During our conversation at the Convention he told me that he had spoken with both the Saint Paul Mayor’s Office and the good folks on the City Council about this issue. He further related that all had agreed to work more closely with the Twin Cities Musicians Union when using live music for their events. Thank you President Kasper. Whether it’s a presence at the State Fair, ties through our friends in Labor, email referrals, or simply utilizing our web site, we continue to try and make Local 30-73 the first place folks think of calling for live music. Keep Practicing! |