CAUT

  • 1.  Video and Audio recording question

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 09-14-2020 16:09
    All-

    For those off you at universities I have a question/small poll-
    If you have audio/video recording services for recitals etc. do you offer those services  to students for audition/competition screening  recording/videos? If so, is there a charge? How much? Our new
    Audio Over IP/ Networked Audio system is beginning its rollout this Fall and these questions are already being asked. We have never offered audio recording services to students for these purposes, only recitals and ensembles. It might make a good income stream for some cost recovery, but trying to weigh the benefits versus the staff bandwidth we have to handle it.

    Many thanks in advance-

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    David Brown
    Garland TX
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  • 2.  RE: Video and Audio recording question

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 09-14-2020 23:21

    David, I'm not sure if this will help...but hopefully it may be of some help in what not to allow. 

    Within the last 10 years I was involved with an institution in which one of the professors happened to be really good at running the recording studio including all performances recorded down in the recital hall. He was hired to do this and all was well for a number of years. 

    At some point he (Apparently) figured out a way to charge people for his services "on the side". This may sound "innocent" to some...but it creates some real issues (for me personally as a matter of fact. He would set up these recording sessions involving the piano and would schedule me to tune before the sessions...no biggie at first until one EXTREMELY picky pianist from another city travelled in for one of these...had complaints...then he asked me to re-tune the piano...then check it again...then AGAIN one more time...(which I refused at this point...) then she became fixated on that particular noise and ended up cancelling out mid-way through what was supposed to be a 3 day session. This piano happened to be AMAZING & no one ever mentioned this mysterious sound before or after this event during my years there. (I later found out this person was kind of a "kook"...)

    A few months later this professor was FIRED in large part because the powers that be figured out what he was doing. A tenured professor by the way. 
    I'm guessing it is a GIVEN that this would not be good to allow...but just in case, I thought I would share. 

    Best!! Kevin 



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    Kevin Fortenberry
    Registered Piano Technician
    Temple, Texas
    806-778-3962
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  • 3.  RE: Video and Audio recording question

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 09-15-2020 01:08
    David
    At the U of Oregon there is a very structured fee schedule for all things happening in Beall Hall.  I am not at school this evening but can get you some figures tomorrow so you might have some idea what to charge.  The fees are more "student" oriented so are of course quite reasonable.  I am hoping that divulging such does not get us into trouble but they are a matter for public record.  

    We have fees for recording and all student performances are recorded.  They are charged as part of the recital fee.  There is a charge for the tuning, recording and live streaming.  Being a state institution all these have to be "of record" in order to make the charge stick and be fair to all.  If it's not on the list it can't be charged out.

    As for Kevin's response I have been in the middle of this as I cannot collect ANY fee or compensation (including gift cards) for tuning for events or recordings.  For instance we have a faculty member who is in a recording project paid for by a grant.  It is not legal for me to charge for this event even though it might be "off the clock" as it is viewed as a double dip/conflict of interest alluded to below by Kevin. 

    Mike R

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    Michael Reiter
    Eugene OR
    541-515-6499
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  • 4.  RE: Video and Audio recording question

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 09-15-2020 11:16
    Re Mike Reiter's comment "As for Kevin's response I have been in the middle of this as I cannot collect ANY fee or compensation (including gift cards) for tuning for events or recordings.  For instance we have a faculty member who is in a recording project paid for by a grant.  It is not legal for me to charge for this event even though it might be "off the clock" as it is viewed as a double dip/conflict of interest alluded to below by Kevin."

    Similar in my case. Any work done for the university had to be via employment, and as my position was "non-exempt" (by the hour, covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act), that meant it was at that hourly rate. We had a professor who got a grant and thought he could get me and the recording engineer to do extra work somehow through that. It was a big mess to explain to him the laws and regulations covering that. He thought he could do us a favor. We could only be paid our hourly rate, and couldn't do overtime without approval. His grant was through the university, so it couldn't really be routed through payroll. The joys of state institutions, but the rules did actually protect us as employees. 






  • 5.  RE: Video and Audio recording question

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 09-17-2020 09:43
    Many thanks to all who have responded. Valuable information.

    Best-

    David

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    David Brown
    Garland TX
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