So you want to book a wedding band to perform on your special day but don’t where to start. Well reading this article should certainly help you make a good decision.
First of all you should decide what style of music you want and when you want it. Popular times to have music at weddings are:
- Music to walk down the aisle to
- Background music for a drinks reception
- Background music during the meal
- Main event bands for people to dance to at night.
So the next step is to pick the correct type of band for the time that you would like them to play in the. Here are just a few suggestions that have always worked well.
Bands for walking down the aisle at a wedding:
Harpist: Is one of my personal favorite choices. The harp produces a really full and Romantic sound. I feel that a harp brings a real touch of class and beauty to the ceremony.
Solo Piano – We would recommend either a few of your favorite classical tunes or a few jazz ballads. Don’t be afraid to make requests for tunes that are particularly special to you as this is your big day after all.
Jazz band: Whilst walking down the aisle if you wanted some jazz we would recommend a either a jazz duo of piano and vocals/trumpet/sax/or jazz trio comprised of vocals/trumpet/sax, Double Bass and piano or guitar just to play a couple of tunes. Anything larger than a jazz trio may start to get a bit loud.
String Quartet: Again the String quartet is the classic and makes walking down the aisle extra special also for a cheaper option than a full quartet its good to know that most string quartets can go out as a trio or even a duo which still sound great. A popular tune whilst walking down the aisle is “Pachabels canon in D”
Flute Duo: Is a nice choice that sounds vey beautiful and delicate. A popular tune they can play in this situation is “Flower Dance” but they should be able to play most tunes you can think of with given notice.
Drinks Reception bands:
Harpist: Would play a similar repertoire as they would for walking down the aisle at the drinks reception. You could request some more current tunes here though for the harpists own unique rendition.
Jazz band: Anything from a jazz duo to a Quintet will work well here. You may be worried that instruments like drums and a trumpet could be too loud but a drummer can use brushes instead of sticks and trumpet players have an array of mutes that make the sound much quieter and enrich the tone giving that cool Miles Davis like sound. A popular choice is a jazz trio, quartet and quintet.
Solo Piano: A cocktail jazz piano set is a popular choice here. Or a mixture of classical music.
Flute Duo: Could play a range of classical music to pop classics.
String Quartet: String quartet is a classic here but as before could also go out as a string trio or duo.
Pop Trio: Would perform a range of background pop classics.
Bands to play at a wedding during the meal:
For booking bands playing during your meal I would say you're looking at pretty much the same type of bands that would play at a drinks reception, something nice that’s more in the background and not too loud or intrusive. If you decide to book a jazz band with drums I would request for the drummer to use brushes instead of drum sticks as this will make it quieter and sound more like dinner jazz.
Main act Party bands for the dance floor at wedding:
Soul/Motown/Pop Bands: This is a classic. Always a winner it’s hard to go wrong. Try to book a band from an agent that also has good promotional material so you can hear what the band sound like before you book them. These bands can vary in size from a 5 piece to 9 piece and beyond. A 7 piece which includes: drums, bass guitar, guitar, keyboard, vocalist and 2 piece horn section of trumpet and tenor saxophone is a classic choice but can usually customized to your needs and budget.
Rock Bands: look through their demos and biog to see if they are of a good standard and right for your night.
Swing bands: Swing bands are becoming more and more popular. It creates a great atmosphere with the bands dressing up in vintage gear and sometimes leading dances from the stage for people to follow. One of my personal favorite choices.
You don’t by any means have to have live music at all of these different points in the day. The popular thing to do is to have a live band as a main act for later on in the night as everyone loves to dance to live music! And If you can afford music at one other point in the day as well for example during the drinks reception then that always makes a big difference and nice talking point among the guests. But of course you can have music just at night or all day as well if you like.
At Silver Stage Entertainment we welcome all questions about bands, prices or how things work so don’t be afraid any question about music for your wedding so you get exactly what you want and nothing less than the best.