Are your minimums typically what you end up paying? (At BACDS contra dances, minimums are guarantees against a split of the door, and on a good night the minimums are far enough exceeded that this would be irrelevant. If your minimums are actually fees, that makes a difference.) Why are you considering flat fee for band? What brings this on? Have duos requested it? Easier bookkeeping? There's several ways of looking at this: 1) Everybody's there for the whole time, the dance couldn't happen without them, and all should get paid the same. or 2) Each person in a 2-person band works harder than a person in a 3-person band, because they just can't lay out for very long. While good musicians can do a fantastic job in a duo, there are more options open to three-voice bands than to two, and they don't need to exercise as much ingenuity. So maybe it's fair to pay duo musicians more than trio musicians. or 3) The price for a band playing music for your dance is $150, whether it's two people or five people. They're delivering a service (three hours of live music) and that's just what it costs. If they're able to deliver a quality experience with a duo you have nothing to complain about. or 4) What draws dancers to your dance? (A big part of it is the other dancers, of course. But in my experience, with a few exceptions, hot bands draw contra dancers (and a well-known, well-liked caller doesn't scare them off), and with a few exceptions, known-good callers (with interesting repertoire and clarity of instruction) draw English dancers (if the band isn't known to suck). [Which isn't to say that English dancers are insensitive to music, and they'll turn out for Bare Necessities.] Maybe the band is worth more than the caller in terms of return at the door. And I can see some weight behind each of those positions What BACDS (San Francisco Bay Area; in a 150-mile-square area we've got several other dance organizations and people will drive 100 miles for a contra dance, so we have competitive pressure) does at contra dances with local talent is guarantee $50 each for up-to-three musicians and up-to-one caller, and (shamefully) half that to sound people. Traveling musicians with higher expenses and especially big name draws from out of town can cut other deals. There are some traveling duos we're very happy to pay as three people because the music is great and they'll draw higher attendance. Because we pay against a split of the door, the caller could get a windfall when working with a duo - a higher share of the split than with a trio, even though not working any harder. -- Alan -- Alan