[TPIN] Market pricing

[Daniel,John]

Cheri,
I'm not communicating very well on this issue, my 
apologies.  I meant to say that I think the annual 5% 
price increase is fair, or at least relatively fair.  I 
mentioned it as the industry standard.  It's the 
exceptions to that policy that I mentioned in my original 
post that have caused my angst:
1.  It's amazing to me how many mouthpieces are being sold 
in the $100-$200 range.
2.  Yamaha closing it's US factories and introducing a new 
line of trumpets priced well above their normal price 
range, and naming them after US cities ta boot!
3.  Bach essentially fires it's work force and 
substantially raises it's prices at the same time.  I 
haven't played that many new Bach trumpets from their new 
work force, but the dozen or so I have played have played 
average to below average.  Maybe I'm biased at this point.

Music dealers in this country have started to balk at this 
as well.  The introduction of the Accent line of 
instruments is specifically targeting the first 
time/professional model consumer.  In other words, the 
pricing of Yamaha and Bach has left a niche for Accent and 
others to fill.  I do hope someone manages to do it well.

So when a trumpet is made with a price tag above the 
annual salary of all but 20 (at most) professional trumpet 
players in this country, I would prefer if folks were not 
too impressed.  I love it when Mike Vax, for example, (who 
has worked with Getzen, Yamaha, and others) just says 
phooey.

I guess I should have said it more clearly the first time; 
maybe I needed to talk it out.

PHOOEY, PHOOEY, PHOOEY, ouch, I'm an old geezer,
John



On Fri, 31 Aug 2007 20:14:05 EDT
  Tptgirl at aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 8/31/2007 4:57:57 P.M. Pacific 
>Daylight Time,  
> john.daniel at lawrence.edu writes:
> 
> Musical  instruments have gone up in pricing 5% per year 
>like 
> clock work.  And  for most of the industry, this 
>continues to be the  
> case. 
> 
> 
> 
> I think that a 5% increase yearly is pretty fair - based 
>on our  economy. It 
> is not just the music industry. When I was at a day job 
>years ago, a  yearly 
> cost of living increase was 5%, so considering that, the 
>increase you  have 
> cited is completely substantiated.
> Compare that to the increases in the cost of living....a 
>quick search  showed 
> US cost of living increase of 2.4% reported by the US 
>Labor Department  from 
> 06/2006 to 06/2007.  I don't have previous years numbers 
>in front of  me, but 
> for prices to not increase is a little unrealistic.
> 
> I am not saying I would not like the prices to stay 
>lower, of course I  
> would.  I actually would like to purchase a new horn 
>right now, but on my  trumpet 
> players salary, it is out of reach at this time.  I 
>understand the  
> frustration... but that is simply how our economy is set 
>up.
> 
> Cheri 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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