Deryk Barker wrote:

>Not to mention money.  The cost of renting much lesser-known music can be
>astronomical.  I was talking with the conductor of a local choir last week
>and he mentioned that when they'd performed a couple of piece by Arvo Pa"rt
>recently a) they couldn't buy the music, had to rent it and b) the charge
>for a lost vocal score was $thousands!

The same is true for many of the Estonian and Finnish composers whose
music has recently become so popular.  At the most recent American Choral
Directors Assn convention in Chicago, I literally railed against a poor
associate of Boosey and Hawkes, who are the most notorious offenders where
price gouging is concerned.

I wanted to perform Tormis' "Curse Upon Iron" but found that the scores to
this 11 minute or so piece were nearly $15 per copy.  AND, the scores were
not even engraved, rather they were copied difficult to read manuscript.

I asked for a justification of such a ridiculous price and was given a
company line about import costs and exchange rates.

My reply was simple and to the point.. Bullshit!

Kevin Sutton