Paying the Organist

Being an organist requires a lot of skill (well, to do it properly it does) and I am reminded of a story my father once told.

A chap needed his washing machine (or some other appliance) mended (this is going back into the 1960s) and the engineer fixed it by turning a nut charging the man £37 0s 3d. When the man exclaimed that all that had been done was to turn a nut, the reply was, "I charged 3d for turning the nut and £37 for knowing which nut to turn".

Similarly with playing the organ. I have acquired a vast amount of experience over the last 49 years but I only accept the fee the church can afford: let's face it, most of them are skint with the odd exception. However, I do expect to be paid as motivation to get out of bed

A long time ago I was very annoyed when the churchwarden where I had been organist for some years let it be known that he begrudged paying the mere £33 per quarter because, he said, I ought to do it voluntarily - like the flower arrangers!

I left not long afterwards.