Here's a question for the composer readers out there: what do you do when someone asks you to write a piece for them? If you're anything like me, you probably jump at the chance to compose a piece that someone is actually offering to perform before you've even written it. It eliminates all the hassle of begging performers to play for you, finding rehearsal space and coordinating all the rehearsals, etc. And you assume you'll get a fabulous performance, because if someone asks you to write a piece for them, it seems likely that they'd be really interested in performing the piece well.
But what do you do next? Do you just sit down and write the piece, assuming everything will work out fine? Do you meet with the commissioner to discuss any specifics? And the question at the heart of it all, at least for me right now... do you work out any sort of contract?
I have a lot of performer friends who are extremely talented, some of whom have performed pieces of mine, some who haven't. I respect them all and I'm not trying to insult anyone. But here's my question of the moment- what do you do when someone decides they don't want to perform your piece?
Obviously you can't force someone to do something that they don't want to do. And for the most part, you can probably find someone else willing to perform it. But what if you can't? And how do you prevent this from happening the next time?
Since I spend a lot of time hanging out with lawyers, I know a bit about contract law, not to brag or anything. Okay, not really, but I know enough to know that a real, official contract with something like a liquidated damages clause would probably scare away most performers, and let's be honest, it would scare me as well.
But I have had many performance/commission opportunities fall through for various reasons. Each time I have to wonder: if I had had a contract- something as simple as the composer writing the piece in exchange for a guaranteed performance- would things have turned out differently? I'm not saying I ever would have sued anyone or anything like that. I just think that the simple act of signing a contract would help both parties (both composer and performer) realize how important and serious the deal is that they are entering into.
If I have any performer readers out there, how would you feel about this? Composer readers- what do you think? Is it worth it to attempt to make a contract if in the process you might scare away the very people who want to commission you?
Posted by Sarah
Hey Sar!
ReplyDeleteIt's Deb. Yes, draft a contract! Caveat-- this is not legal advice and I am not entering into an atty/client relationship. Ok, if you had a verbal agreement where there was reliance you might even have an argument. But if you have a written document where the performer is obligated to put forth x amount of dollars then you are safe. You can even put in a clause that if the performer is unhappy with the final product, she is required to pay $X for the time spent composing and is also required to put in one good faith attempt to work with the composer to modify the music according to her liking. EW why do i speak like this naturally. mwa love the blogging
Thanks for the non-legal advice, Deb!
ReplyDeleteI think the problem really is not that I don't think making a contract would be a good idea- I very much agree that it would. But my hesitation, besides what I said above about contracts being sort of off-putting (at least for non-lawyers), is that I think when making contracts with friends/acquaintances, it almost implies that you don't trust them, which is awkward.
For me, it's not that I don't trust them, but that I have to protect myself based on past experiences. Even the best of friends or most trustworthy people might make mistakes. Plus if you are making a contract or whatever you want to call it with a friend, it's a lot less awkward to figure out what to do in the event that something goes wrong (instead of having to have that horribly awkward conversation of, oh crap, now what, can I ask this person to pay me... etc). And obviously I'm writing this from a composer's perspective, but I think it would be helpful for performers too. What if you commission a composer and they decide not to write a piece for you, or they don't finish in time for your recital? It can be helpful for everyone involved to make sure you're on the same page before you start.
Posted by Sarah