Performers hit out at festival's 'unfair' £50 pay offer

Zoe Bestel says the fee failed to recognise the skill level of local performers

The Big Burns Supper (BBS) festival in Dumfries has come under fire over a £50 fee being offered to performers.

Some local musicians said they were "deeply disgusted" at the rate being offered which they described as "not fair".

The January event is returning next year having been cancelled in 2024 due to its failure to secure key funding.

Organisers said they were a "bit shocked" by the criticism of the fee - which they said was for volunteers wanting to perform on their free community stages.

The BBS has posted a "community call-out" for local music acts, spoken word artists, DJs and community groups to use the stage.

It is looking for different acts to perform at free stages and venues between 17 January and 2 February for up to 45 minutes.

The £50 fee being offered - along with guest passes to the festival club and two drink tokens - has prompted criticism.

Zoe Bestel performed at the BBS more than a decade ago as a teenager and has not worked with them since.

She said her mother had persevered through "nine months, two bounced cheques and ultimately daily phone calls" in order to get paid back then.

"The flat fee is not fair, it’s against Musician's Union guidelines, and diminishes the skill level of local performers purely based on their proximity to the event," she said.

She added that in a large region like Dumfries and Galloway the money would barely cover travel expenses from some areas.

"Performers should be paid for their time. The idea of working, professional musicians playing for free in return for 'exposure' is an outdated exploitation," she said.

"Even 'emerging' artists if invited to play an event, not consenting and instigating to perform at an open mic for example, should always be paid."

Susi Briggs said the event was offering a "low undervalued fee" to grassroots acts

Susi Briggs - a freelance artist and musician, and Dumfries and Galloway's Scots Scriever (a writing residency at the National Library of Scotland) - has also criticised the move.

"A festival of such calibre should hang their head in shame for even offering such a low fee," she said.

"BBS is all about promoting Scottish culture and yet has incongruously offered a low undervalued fee to the local grassroots acts."

She said it was time to stop blaming the arts funding crisis over a situation she was "no longer comfortable being silent about".

"Musicians spend hours rehearsing, travelling and building their talent and network," she said.

"We have bills to pay like everyone else.

"You can't chop up exposure and make soup or slice it for sandwiches. Exposure often gets you hee haw."

The Big Burns Supper is returning this year with events including an underwater Burns supper

Festival director Graham Main said they had been surprised by some of the comments they had received.

"We were a bit shocked about the criticism we received about our payment structure for community participation at our festival," he said.

"It is an invitation to take part in the festival and offering them a fee is a gesture of our respect to them, and a way for us to encourage them to continue in their artistic field.

"To be clear, this is for our free community stages which will form part of Dumfries Carnival which is a free weekend for children and families.

"We won't make any financial gain from this showcase."

He said each individual performer would get tickets worth £90 and a drinks token worth £10 in addition to the £50 fee - a model used by many other festivals.

He said they had been forced to remodel payments as their funding had decreased but had done so "in good faith".

He said that the rate did not apply to professional musicians who were paid at agreed union rates.