Through collective action, the Association offers its members support, respect and specific services to maximize their ability to succeed in the music business.
Your membership fees consist of annual membership dues and a work dues buyout fee. Please read the categories below, add them together, and complete a payment for the full amount. Once submitted, you’ll receive a receipt and an updated membership card from the Calgary Musicians Association.
Annual Membership Dues:
Work Dues Buyout:
The Stan Brown Benevolent Fund is an emergency fund for members in financial need. Reach out to the CMA office if you would like more information. Donations are always welcome!
Members are provided with free contracts which provide binding protection on all engagements.
If members have a signed filed contract, the Association will advance them fees for the engagement should they be cancelled, fired, replaced or given a NSF cheque. The Association will then handle the claim.
Through a reciprocal agreement within the AFM, Canadian Members have access to temporary US Work Permits.
Low group rates for instrument and liability insurance; group rates for medical, dental and income replacement insurance.
AFM provides a host of services for the freelance musician or group including AFM Entertainment, GoProLessons and GoProHosting.
A number of local, national, and international agreements with major employers of musicians offer access to all types of employment at industry standard wages and working conditions.
Automatic pension contributions on most employment covered by a collective agreement and the option of including pension contributions on other contracted employment.
Emergency interest-free loans to members in need.
Funded by the recording companies as part of their agreement with AFM, this program pays scale wages to musicians for free-to-the-public performances.
We actively encourage the public to use our web referral service for all their music needs. Help and advice for them and more gigs for our members!
Between our roster of members and knowledgeable staff, we help match musicians with other musicians.
We maintain a database of information useful to our members – clubs, contacts, funding agencies, services, discounts, legal advice, tax advice, etc. Members receive the Local newsletter four times per year and the monthly international publication, International Musician.
Free, regular, informal and useful seminars presented by experts in their field.
The Association lobbies civic, provincial and national governments for improvements in legislation affecting professional musicians.
All fees are tax-deductible. Flexible payment arrangements are available. Payment can be made with an etransfer to info@calgarymusicians.org or by calling the office at 587 437 8439 with a Visa or Mastercard number.
Musicians joining for the first time pay one-time Initiation Fees of $115.00 ($65.00 AFM & $50.00 Local) in addition to annual dues. Students in an accredited school, college or university and those under the age of 21 are exempt from the Initiation Fees. Self-contained groups are also exempt from Initiation Fees if the entire group joins at one time.
Current Annual Dues are $202.00. When applicable, Work Dues amount to a very small percentage of MINIMUM fee wages (as opposed to gross contracted price.) For casual and steady engagements, a mandatory individual work dues buyout is required.
Please call the office at 587 437 8439 between 9 am and 4 pm Monday to Friday, email info@calgarymusicians.org, or complete the following form to get started. We will email you an application form and answer any questions you might have about membership.
