So many times when we exhibit at wedding fayres, or meet people planning a corporate event, we speak to people who say ‘We’ve decided to just have a DJ’. I think, sure, fair enough, of course, if thats what you want…but is it what you want? Or is it just that the budget is being used elsewhere?

I think a small part of your overall budget should always be kept aside for live music, and here’s why:

- Live Music is the part of the evening that your guests will always remember, and 99% of the time, the element that people will most talk about. You don’t often hear someone, two weeks after the event, say ‘Oh weren’t those table decorations fantastic’ (as lovely as they were!) but a live band, now thats a talking point!

- This is a part of the evening that will really set an atmosphere. Whether you decide on a smooth jazz band to sit in the background of the event, or a large, huge impact party band to get all your guests on the dance floor, there’s no denying it, either option (and everything in between!) will set your desired atmosphere better than any DJ.

- For some reason, there’s something about a band that will really get your guests to let their hair down. I suppose its probably the fact that when there are a group of musicians up on that stage jumping about like loonies, your guests can’t help but get infected by their energy! It takes a lot of guts and self confidence to get up and perform in front of an audience, and by doing so, I believe the musicians are welcoming all of your guests to invoke some of that confidence in themselves.

- While we’re on the subject of energy, there’s nothing quite like a live band for giving music a kick, way more than a DJ technically can. Live drums to keep the party thumping, live bass to get the guests up dancing, and of course live vocals will always have a really high impact on the energy of an event.

I could go on forever – music is most definitely what makes my world go round, and live music – well, quite simply there’s nothing better! Its all a matter of opinion of course, but for me, having performed at a million events and seen just how well received live music can be, there’s just no question that its SO worth the money and effort to arrange – find the right band, and your party is guaranteed to go down a storm!

Something I wanted to write about this month is the planning and organisational side of your event entertainment. Ok, I admit, this sounds like perhaps one of the lesser exciting subjects I could be writing about, but I truly believe that thinking about timings and putting together a schedule for the evening is one of the most important elements of any event. There’s absolutely no point in spending weeks finding the right entertainment acts, deciding on the perfect singer, perhaps agonising over song choices…(the list could go on) to then find that the band is playing over your fantastic firework display so most of your guests miss one or the other!

So, here are just a few simple rules to follow to ensure your reception goes smoothly and you get the best out of everything you spend your hard-earned money on….

1)      Organise any ‘features’ (and by that I mean anything and everything from a live band set, to a solo singer, to a fireworks display, to the evening buffet) to work around each other. If you’re booking a live band or vocalist, in most cases this will total two(ish) hours and be split into two to three sets. This works well as it means you can fit things like your buffet, fireworks or other attractions in the breaks. This is really important – I suppose the firework display is an obvious one (there’s no point in sending all your guests outside to see the display in the middle of the bands set!), but less obvious is the buffet. I always recommend to my clients that they arrange the buffet during the band’s break as other-wise it tends to be a bit of a waste of the live music (or perhaps a waste of the buffet if your band is good enough!). A good band will keep your guests up and dancing all night, so it seems silly to distract them from the dance-floor with the buffet when it could all be arranged around each other.

Top Tip: Get your live music act to liaise with the venue/caterers RE timings so you don’t have to worry about it. They will be used to designing a great schedule so if you leave them to put something together this saves you the hassle and you can rest assured that things should go super smoothly!

2)      Don’t put your live music on too early. This wouldn’t be the case if you’ve maybe booked a smooth jazz act to start the evening off obviously, but if you’ve gone for a typical ‘party band’, this rule definitely applies! I think people tend to think, ‘right, we will have finished the meal….arrgh, then what?!!’ so they tend to organise their band to start straight afterwards. We find that actually, in 9 times out of 10, when it actually comes to that point in the evening, everyone will be busy chatting away, and guests tend to want to have a few drinks first before they indulge in some hardcore dancing! I find, as a performer myself, the worst thing in the world is playing a set too early when the audience isn’t really ready for you. It tends to result in (again) a wasted set, which we hate as it means a) we don’t feel like our clients are getting their money’s worth, and b) its a lot more fun when the guests are all dancing like maniacs and having a fab time.

Top Tip: If you’ve booked a DJ, get them to start the evening off, perhaps playing the first hour or so to ‘warm up’ your guests before the main music act starts. If you haven’t booked a DJ, most professional bands will offer taped music from an iPod or CD for no extra charge, so ask them to play music for you! (Similarly they will play this in the breaks also)

3)      Take advice over the format of the live music sets. Most bands or music acts will have a few different options for how to perform their repertoire – for example, our bands tend to offer 2 x 70minute sets, or 3 x 40minutes as an alternative option. We find the 2 x 70minutes option works a LOT better, but for some reason clients tend to be drawn to the 3 x 40s option (even though its less total time). We really offer the three shorter sets for when an event perhaps is an especially long one without much else going on (i.e no DJ etc). In this case perhaps it might be better to go for this option, but 99% of the time we find it makes for a better party to go for the 2 x 70minute option. This is just an example – but most bands will have little bits of wise advice like this, based on their own experience. Don’t be afraid to ask your act for as much advice as you need, they’ll appreciate being asked and it will definitely make for a smoother and more successful reception.

Top Tip: It’s also worth asking your act what they’d suggest in terms of breaks. Perhaps they need a certain amount of time to do costume changes, or perhaps if they’re a high impact party band they might suggest their breaks are not too long (so you don’t lose the dynamic of the evening). This will also help you decide on a start time and when to arrange the evening buffet/other attractions.

4)      Don’t be afraid of a gap in the entertainment. This seems to be another thing our clients sometimes worry about but actually find on the day it’s quite nice to have a break in the live music. You’ll find that everyone will take advantage of a break and go to the bar/loo/outside for a ‘breath of fresh air’.   

I think the emphasis with all this is planning, taking advice from your suppliers, and most of all, (in the words of Bob Marley) ‘Don’t worry about a thing’. Brides & Grooms / event planners tend to stress about the finer details such as these, especially when the big day is close, but really with a bit of careful thinking and forward-planning, you’ll find your event will go super-smoothly and leave you time to enjoy yourselves.

Love & Hugs

Sera x