Do you have thoughts or questions about my prizes? Or do you wonder what you pay for?

The purpose of this policy is to inform you about what I charge for, and what I take into account as I my prices. My experience is that there is often a confusion and lack of knowledge around what lies behind the prizes of musical services. Sometimes, there is also a social norm in place, that tells us that culture shouldn’t cost. Because of this, I think it is important to tell you more about what my services need to cost in order to make my kind of business survive in the long run.

1: I charge for all the work I invest in your service. It might sound obvious, but it still need to be stated, as many of the services includes a lot more work than what the costumer actually sees.

Prizes for musical services: A gig is not just the time on the stage. The music need to be rehearsed, both on my own and with other musicians if applicable. If the repertoire is new, I might need to take time to prepare sheet music. I also need to take time to communicate with my fellow musicians, and with the arranger or customer. I also have travel expenses, and possibly also costs for food and accommodation. It also takes time to put the gear up and down for every gig. All of these potential costs is part of every specific gig, and therefore it reasonable to include it in the prize (not unlike a carpenter, who charges you for extra costs such as travel expenses and material costs). I will of course strive for keeping the rehearsal time effective, so that I will not have to charge you more than necessary. As the extent of the times varies there are no fixed rates for musical services.

Prizes for lessons: A lesson is more than the time with the student. My service also requires that I take time for preparing the lesson, for documentation, invoicing, accounting, as well as costs for buying sheet music that I need in my education. Because of that, the prizes need to be slightly higher than if these aspects were not part of the job.

2: As a self-employed worker I pay additional costs such as tax and VAT. Roughly, I will loose half of what I earned due to taxes. Because of this, it is necessary to set higher prizes. Other additional costs that I need to take into account includes costs for piano tuning, travel expenses and education material for my lessons.

3: I highly value your opinions about my prizes, and about your abilities to pay. Point 1-2 has the purpose to explain my starting point, but i’m also open for a dialoge regarding the prizes, and to find a deal that is on good terms for both parts. Depending on the work, returned favors or partial payment might be an option.

4: Bought services that has not yet been executed (such as piano lessons that are bought but which has not yet taken place) the costumer has 14 days of withdrawal of the costumer wishes so. This only applies of the services has not yet started to take place.

På tjänster som ännu ej utförts (exempelvis bokning av nya lektioner) så har kunden 14 dagars ångerrätt. Tjänster som redan börjat verka (exempelvis om de köpta lektionerna har börjat användas) omfattas ej av ångerrätten.

5: If I feel it is necessary for the specific service, I will establish a written agreement. A written agreement might be a document that summarizes what the parts has agreed upon. Sometimes an email conversation is sufficient as documentation. A written agreement is a safety document for both parts and makes things clearer. My experience is that most misunderstandings happens when the communication is not clear and documented. It is easy to forget spoken words, but a document stays the same.

Do you have more questions about my policy? Feel free to email me at contact@musicwitherik.com