Bookings, Payment and Performance Requirements
Bookings
· To ensure availability, bookings should be made at least a month in advance.
· There is a 25% deposit payable at time of booking. This deposit is not refundable.
Payment
· Payment can be made by cash, money order, cheque or bank transfer, with details available upon request.
· Final payment must be made at least a week before the performance.
· No money will be refunded after the performance.
· Cancellations must be made at least one week in advance, and if final payment has been paid this will be fully refunded (minus 25% deposit).
· You will not be charged for any additional payments that have not been discussed with the exception of overtime fees.
Overtime
We understand that things can sometimes go wrong or be delayed on the day, especially at weddings. Therefore, if your event is delayed for any reason, we offer the following service:
· An extra 15 minutes of playing time will be allowed.
· Any additional time over 15 minutes will be charged at the standard rate in half hour blocks ($130) and this amount will be payable immediately.
· If you would like us to stay overtime, this must be discussed with the quartet on the day, and most times we will be quite happy to stay and play. We do allow time between performance if there is more than one booking that day, but sometimes we will not be able to play overtime.
Additional Information
· All performances outside of the greater Brisbane area are subject to a travel fee to be negotiated depending on location.
· If there is a gap between performances, for example a wedding ceremony finishing at 3.30pm and the reception at the same venue at 5pm, extra fees will apply.
Performance Requirements
The string instruments we use are all acoustic, incredibly fragile and react substantially to temperature, lighting, the weather and the environment in which they are being played. Therefore, there are certain requirements to make sure our performance is the best it can be.
We require:
· Four solid armless chairs.
· Sufficient space to play in, approximately four square metres.
· Good lighting.
· If the performance is for a wedding, we need to be able to see and hear what is going on during the service so we can be cued as when to play.
· Placement of the quartet on a hard surface and in front of a wall is ideal to increase the volume of the instruments, however it is not absolutely essential.
· If the performance is outdoors, the quartet must be in shade, and not in direct sunlight, as this will damage our instruments. Shading could be under trees, an umbrella, a marquee, a verandah, a gazebo etc.
· If the performance is outdoors and it is raining we WILL NOT play, even if it is only very lightly spitting, as this will greatly damage our instruments. You must have a wet weather plan in place, or a very sheltered area for the quartet to play in.
· Also keep in mind other weather conditions if outdoors. For example on the beach and by the Brisbane River it is often very windy, so try to provide some shelter from this if possible to prevent our music and stands blowing over.
· For performances of more than an hour a 10-15 minute break is required, and a drink of water would be greatly appreciated.