We book by the hour. We could certainly play an additional 30 minutes, but it'll be charged at the hourly rate.

There are only a couple of cases where we would assess additional fees: 1) There's a song you really really want us to play, but isn't in our playlist and isn't available online. We do arrangements! Our usual fee to create a custom version of your song is $50 per song. We'll send you the PDF for your own collection as a souvenir! 2) You want electric amplification. Usually, if you have a DJ on site, you will want to use their services. They've already brought the equipment you'll need. We don't usually need it for our own purposes, but if you have a large group of people in attendance, a sizeable hall, or if you're outdoors and spread out over a large area, we can provide what you need. In addition to amplifying our musicians, we also provide a wireless handheld mic and a lapel mic for your use as well. $200

Great question! our rates are available on our booking page. Follow the link at the top of this web page labeled "Book Online," then choose your ensemble (Solo, Duo, Trio, or Quartet) and the length of the engagement to see our prices.

Go to https://www.rockcreekstrings.com/book-online "Book Online" from the menu at the top of our website, select select your ensemble size, length of engagement, and date, and if you are able to select the time you want us to be there, we're available!

Go to https://www.rockcreekstrings.com/book-online or click the "Book Online" link at the top of this webpage, select your ensemble size, length of engagement, date and time you'd like us to start our performance, then enter your address for your event, fill in the personal information, and pay the $300 deposit via PayPal or credit card.

We require a $300 deposit at the time of booking, either via PayPal or Credit Card. You'll receive a final bill via email one week before your event. Alternately, you can mail a check with the balance due at any time before that.

Yes! We'll forward our COI to you along with your contract as a pdf to your email address. If you require a named entity, that usually takes 72 hours. You can always request it by writing to jeff@academymusicolney.com.

Our library is constantly expanding. Our web page.... isn't always up to date. Just ask, because chances are we have already added it to our library. If not, we should be able to grab a copy online. Failing that, we do arrangements! For $50, we can play a world premier string arrangement of your favorite song, and you get a copy of the sheet music as a souvenir as well.

Great! We want to play your requests. Email your requests to jeff@academymusicolney.com.

No problem! Call at 301-580-8776 or email jeff@academymusicolney.com and we'll make some suggestions for you based on your needs and preferences.

Yes, you will. We'll generate your contract and forward it to you to sign as a PDF via your email address.

Usually the answer to this question is "YES." Our contract will stipulate overtime rates, so as long as our musicians aren't committed to play another gig or rescue the babysitter, we'll stick around for you.

In many cases, we ask our clients to consider booking musicians to play BEFORE events begin. For example, if a wedding ceremony starts at 4:00 in the afternoon, we'd encourage you to have us play prelude up to 30 minutes before the ceremony is scheduled to begin (3:30 PM) so that guests can enjoy music as they arrive and begin taking their seats.

1) Yes. 2) Heat is as big a problem for us as rain. Above 85 degrees, in direct sunlight, our bow hair starts to stretch out, the rosin can melt, and our instruments can start to develop open seams (the glue starts to unglue itself) and our musicians start to resemble Margaret Hamilton under a bucket of water in The Wizard of Oz. We'll ask for plenty of cover and no leaks in the rain, and at least a shade tree in the heat. 3) Cold is as big a problem for us as heat. if it's too cold, our fingers don't work well, and our instruments can start developing those open seams, same as the heat. Also your guests will be shivering and want to go back inside anyway.

We're pretty flexible with timing. The sooner you can tell us of changes, the easier it is for us to make changes. For scheduling changes requested within 30 days of your event, we'll charge a $200 fee for rescheduling. Canceling requires forfeiting your deposit.