AIBU or WWYD. Noisy musical instruments in a semi-detached house

[EightToSixer]

If your neighbour comes over at 9:05pm to ask you very nicely whether you realise that the clarinet their daughter is playing can be heard very loudly next door and had woken their child up at 6:50am in the morning and 9:05 the same evening, do you:
A) apologise that the noise travelled.
B) ask what time the noise would be a problem and arrange to play at a more reasonable time
C) say, it's not that loud! what do you expect me to do about it?!

[eofa1]

B)

[greenbananas]

I'd go for a combination of A and B. Good luck.

[Wallison]

This is a reverse AIBU, isn't it? Anyway, I would apologise but tbh the situation shouldn't have arisen - we are a noisy house with lots of instruments but nothing louder than an acoustic guitar gets played before 9 am (11 am on a weekend) or after 9 pm.

[treadheavily]

B

[Dobbiesmum]

B every time. Are you the neighbour? 6.50 is way too early for music practice!! DD is only allowed to practice hers between getting home from school and 7pm. Anytime after 10am on weekends is enough for us (and our neighbours..)!

[whois]

B

This must be a reverse!

[Wallison]

Although I am slightly amazed that a clarinet being played on the other side of a wall is loud enough to wake anyone up - they're really not that loud!

[5madthings]

I would apologize profusely and then do b.

Also make sure the child plkays it away from the party wall. Certainly not upstairs in a bedroom that is ajoined to the neighbours house.

[greenbananas]

Also, is your house set up in such a way that she could play her clarinet in a different room where she is less likely to wake the baby?

[tickingboxes]

B. When my brother had drums the neighbours came round to ask if we could agree times when he could play it. Worked out well.

[Snoopingforsoup]

I would probably apologise and get my child to practice at more sociable hours.
The rule in our home is no instruments after 8:30pm but we live in a terrace with one set of very moany neighbours.
Isn't there a sort of noise law which applies from 11pm to 7am?

[greenbananas]

Mm, you're the neighbour aren't you.... sounds like you have experienced some very unreasonable rudeness!

[AutumnWind]

The problem is it's within reasonable hours (7am-11pm), so not much different to other noise issues.

I would apologise and would try to be aware if neighbour, but it's not always possible. In our house instruments are only ever played in the rooms furthest away from the adjoining wall.

[IamInvisible]

B.

But I bet you asked and they said C!

[EeyoreIsh]

B surely. Can they not play with a mute? I used to practice before school and after, if at music college 3 hours a day is expected.

[AutumnWind]

Sorry, misread earliest time.

The music practice will stop. Better than a cd that can go on indefinitely...

[EightToSixer]

Sorry, yes it's a reverse.
I thought I might be unreasonable for going over there, but they're a pain in the backside. The clarinet being murdered like a screaming cat is plenty loud enough at the wall next to the child's bed.
We have previously had to complain to them for drilling into the party wall of our bedroom at 6:02am on a Sunday morning. The rest of the time we don't complain about their random hours/weird behaviour/general dickishness, so I'm no victor meldrew about it.

I'd rather know about it if it were my child doing it, which is why I nicely asked them to keep it to reasonable hours from now on.

[DejaVuAllOverAgain]

B

[Wallison]

9.05 isn't that unreasonable to be playing music though - put it this way, it's only five minutes after the curfew in this house. And in the morning it's only ten minutes earlier than the time that another poster stated would be classed as a nuisance. It's not as though she's squawking away at 2 or 3 in the morning - it's just evening time, not even really night time. I would put it down to one of those things that happens if you don't have a detached house - I'm sure your own kid makes noise as well!

[Fleta]

Thing is, surely if you're a reasonable person if someone has said to you "we can hear X" you'd make some effort to deal with it - move practice to a different room, do at a different time.

[DifferenceEngine]

D. Buy a drum kit, practice incessantly, but somehow fail to attain any proficiency. :)

[IAlwaysThought]

Wow, they are really, really unreasonable.

I would say after 9 in the morning and before 7. Can they move to a room furthest away from your house.

[Mylovelyboy]

B - I think its fantastic that you are all so musical. But in saying that, would bloody drive me nuts whatever time of day it was to be honest. What gives you the right to inflict your noise on other people.

[Mylovelyboy]

Just re-read. 6.50am - you are taking the piss IMO.

[ShoeWhore]

A and B.

Ds practises piano after 8am on weekdays (although our semi is halls-adjoining and next door is double fronted so there are at least 3 rooms between the piano and anywhere the neighbours might be)

He is only allowed to practise trumpet in the playroom that is as far away as possible from next door and only after school!