So you’re planning a wedding.
Ah…the joy! The un-ending expenses, the coordinating, sending out 1,500 invitations in which 10% of the family responds too. It can be on the stressful side. This is supposed to be one of the happiest, most beautiful days of your entire life, but the planning can place an uncanny burden on you. One thing that will help you out it knowing how to go about booking your wedding entertainment.
So technically you can get any type of wild entertainment for your wedding if you really want (video game character impersonators, fire dancers, Christopher Walken) but for most of the more traditional weddings, it comes down to four choices:
Band
DJ
Strings
Solo Musician
There are pros and cons of each one and you want to make sure that you have just the right fit for your wedding.
Band
Pros:
- So much fun
- Interactive and can liven up a room with their energy
- Can have medleys/mashups and versions of songs you’e never heard before
Cons:
- More members = more money
- More people to coordinate and feed
- The loudest of all the options
Strings:
Pros:
- Emotionally gripping and perfectly suited for weddings
- Very good at adjusting volume
- The type of performance that can grab attention or be background
Cons:
- More people = more money
- Not ideal for dancing
DJ
Pros:
- Will have a huge list of songs to choose from
- Pre-recorded songs don't mess up
- Sometimes are able to MC the wedding as well
- Cheaper than a band
Cons:
- Aren’t really performing live
- Sometimes difficult to distinguish between a hobbyist and professional prior to booking
Solo Musician:
Pros:
- Most cost efficient option
- Can usually perform the ceremony, cocktail hour, reception and background music
- Interactiveness of a band, but without the high noise level
- Easiest to coordinate and set up
- Can move to different locations the easiest
Cons:
- Not ideally suited for dancing
Keep in mind also a few things about your specific wedding; even if you have your heart set on something, the vibe, the location and who will be there is also very important when making your final decision. Some venues have noise restrictions, which can eliminate DJ’s and Bands from being an option. Some venues are outside and depending on the time of the year, can make it very difficult for string players to maintain the tuning of their instruments.
When you have decided what type of musician you want the next thing you want to do is hunt for the right one. Google is your friend. You can literally type in “solo wedding musician near me” and see who is available. Ask your musician to see their website and you should see the following things:
Photos
Video
Client Testimonials
FAQ
Contact
The most efficient of all your options would be to hire a solo musician for the early part of the wedding (seating of the guests, cocktail hour, ceremony) and then have the DJ begin later in the evening once everyone has had a chance to catch up and they want to start dancing. You get the soft, heartfelt music early on and then the dance floor begins after the ceremony is over, it’s the best of both worlds; the least amount of people to coordinate and two very distinctly different types of music to keep things fresh throughout the night. Before you book your entertainer, though, make sure to ask them these five questions CLICK HERE to make sure you get a professional and not a part timer!
Dylan Galvin (Dylan like “Bob Dylan”, Galvin like “Calvin and Hobbes” with a “G”) is a singer/songwriter and live performer in Los Angeles, CA. Follow him on Instagram, Youtube and Facebook.
