[Dixielandjazz] Wedding OKOM

[Steve Barbone]

 jim at kashprod.com wrote:

Steve replied:
Be that as it may, any OKOM band that gets more than $600 per sideman, or
$4200 (extra $600 being the leader/booking fee) for a 6 piece band for one
hour at a local gig is to be envied. That rarely happens in the USA.

> Jim replied: Not looking for envy.  Merely trying to point out that mentioning
>gig fees on DJML, an international mailing list, is worthless.  Your yardstick
>means nothing in areas outside of your own, so why mention your fees at all?

You ask why, I ask why not? Does it hurt anyone to mention them? Not likely
Here's why I disagree and think it helps. USA fees are quite relevant (in my
Opinion as a resident) to lots of bands in the USA. Especially those who
seek to get a fair price for their creativity. And I cannot presume to know
what is worthless to an "International Mailing List", and doubt anyone else
can, except perhaps a clairvoyant reading some 550 minds in an instant.

>There's always going to be somebody doing better than yourself.  It doesn't
>show how good you are or how good a particular band is.

Of course, but that is not relevant to the original discussion since no one,
it seems, but you is/was talking about how good anyone was. It was about why
bands in the USA might wish to go after a viable segment of the wedding
market and how a couple of us do it.

>It only shows what the particular market allows.

Yes, that is exactly the relevance of the discussion. Since you serve the
wedding market, you know what it allows. Those who don't might wish to learn
and or explore the opportunities it presents. Shouldn't we be sharing our
experiences in a positive way? Isn't that one function of the DJML? And it
would seem that the market segment is quite similar in Spain and the USA.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone