Piping on St. Patrick's Day

[masonpiper]

I usually charge $75 /half hour, with a “free” half hour to hour for tuning etc. That is a price for Weddings and Funerals. A Funeral usually works out to a set in the chapel (1/2 hour) and/or a set at graveside (1/2 hour). Weddings, I charge from the time the show is supposed to go on, until I leave, with at least $300 paid up front, as I have been burned by parents. If I was playing a pub for an hour or so, like 3, 10-15 minute sets, I would go with $50-100, plus tab and tips, depending on how much I like the pub.

A party like that, $150 maybe, that’s $50 bucks an hour and you might get some other gigs from it. Remember, YOU learned how to play that darn thing and YOU maintain it and that’s worth something, if people want the pipes they need to pay to appreciate it and for the rest of us. A very wise old Scot told me once, if you will do it for free why should they pay me?

[mull]

Remember, YOU learned how to play that darn thing and YOU maintain it and that’s worth something, if people want the pipes they need to pay to appreciate it and for the rest of us.

Hence the saying you have to pay the piper!

[ANP3]

Haha very true! I was thinking $50 an hour or flat rate of $100.

[masonpiper]

LOL I was trying to avoid saying pay the piper...but YEAH

[flyingshamrock]

If I was playing a pub for an hour or so, like 3, 10-15 minute sets, I would go with $50-100, plus tab and tips, depending on how much I like the pub.

A party like that, $150 maybe, that’s $50 bucks an hour and you might get some other gigs from it. Remember, YOU learned how to play that darn thing and YOU maintain it and that’s worth something, if people want the pipes they need to pay to appreciate it and for the rest of us. A very wise old Scot told me once, if you will do it for free why should they pay me?

I've went as low as $50 but I wanted an endless supply of Guinness while I was there.

[piperdbh]

A 3-hour gig is an awfully big time commitment. I'd try to whittle it down if I were you.

[OC Richard]

For many years I've charged $200 for a gig, whether it be a funeral, wedding, or what have you. That includes any gig up to an hour. If the gig runs over a few minutes I don't make a fuss over it.

I usually tack on an another $100 for each additional hour. So your three-hour gig would be a $300 gig for me.

I wouldn't myself do a three-hour gig on the big pipes. I do do a three-hour gig each St Patrick's Day, a laid-back house party where I sit in a corner and play uilleann pipes, Scottish Smallpipes, and various whistles. I even break out the big pipes a couple times.

About kilts on St Patrick's Day, it varies for me from year to year. There are years where I'm only doing uilleann gigs and I wear pants all day. There are years where I'm only doing GHB gigs and it's kilts all day. (I somewhat dislike playing the uilleann pipes in kilts, and playing the GHB in pants.)

Your proposed outfit sounds fine to me.

[creagdhubh]

(I somewhat dislike playing the uilleann pipes in kilts, and playing the GHB in pants.)

Makes complete sense to me, Richard.

[seanachie]

Quality Matters too. For my wedding I did not want to get the "low bidder".
I had a piper pipe us down the aisle after Mass and I had a wonderful uillean piper with 2 additional musicians at the reception. This was a frugal wedding, but as a day always to be remembered I paid fairly and for quality. If you are a quality piper don't sell your talents short.

[ANP3]

Thanks for the help,

I don't expect to be playing for 3 hours non stop, I don't even think I could, when I timed myself last I had about 13ish min., of music memorized perfectly and that was at more or less full tempo on all the tunes, and I was beat. So, how as a Piper do I make a few tunes last a long time, I can play a huge number of tunes from sheet music, but that feels like cheating. Is it? Also, how do pipers usually play at gigs, all tunes non stop, or due to the relative informality if the gig would it be tune, socialize, tune and socialize etc.?