Choosing the entertainment

The choice of entertainment for your evening’s reception can be bewildering, be it a DJ or a live band there is a vast selection to choose from, so how do you decide what is right for you and your guests?

Weddings usually encompass a wide array of guests spanning generations, so the challenge is to cater for everyone’s tastes.  A DJ provides music but a good live band will also put on a show, being as entertaining to watch as the music is to listen to.  This additional dimension is especially important for those who don’t want to  or can’t dance.

If you decide to go for a band, where do you find the right one for you?  Most bands that specialise in functions and weddings will advertise on the internet, in wedding magazines, at wedding fairs, through wedding directories and local directories.

There are a lot of bands out there so how do you sort out the wheat from the chaff?  As a first port of call check out the band’s web site. Important indicators are:

• Does it have biogs for all the band members? This will give a feel for the standard and experience of the players

• Are there live sound bytes?  Studio produced sound bytes sound great but can be greatly enhanced, live recordings might not be of particularly good sound quality but will give a better indication as to how well the band plays,

• Video clips will show you how the band looks and performs on stage plus you have the added bonus of seeing how the audience reacts to them.  Again amateur clips are a much better gauge than professionally produced recordings.

To help you select the right band you should also consider the following points.
• What style of music do they perform?  You want a night of music that people can dance to, you won’t get people up and dancing to obscure music that no one has heard of.  People respond to music they know so you want music that people recognise, we at RetrOactive cover all styles of dance music from jazz and swing through to rock and pop from the 1940′s through to the modern day.  We select music that has a universal appeal to audiences, making sure that no one is left out of the night’s entertainment.

• Do they do special requests? i.e. your first dance music. If the band does not already have the arrangement they will need to buy it in and there may be a cost for doing this, so always check.  Also remember if you want a big swing number as your first dance and you are thinking of hiring a four piece band that does not do swing numbers, no matter how good the band, they will not be able to recreate the big band sound you will be used to hearing.  If you want a faithful cover of the record you may be better off playing a CD.

• Will they play pre-recorded music through their PA during the bands breaks?  Don’t assume this will be automatically provided. Nothing dampens an evening’s reception quite like musical silence between the band’s sets.

• Do they provide their own stage/dance floor lighting and is this included in the price?

If the band’s web site does not specify their technical requirements ask what these are as these could prove to be limiting factors when hiring the act, e.g. check the size of stage/performance area needed, power requirements etc.

Ask if you can come along and hear the band play before you commit to the booking.  We hold a number of open rehearsals throughout the year for any potential customers to come along to meet and listen to us.

Lastly don’t forget if you want a party atmosphere for your evening’s reception, then choose a band that understands what a special occasion this is for you.

Article by Jo Simmons
Band Manager

Website: www.retroactive-jazz.co.uk
email: bookings@retroactive-jazz.co.uk