Wedding music is always one of the most remembered elements of a wedding day. Before you begin planning the experience, find your style. We have some tips to help you plan your wedding music.
Creating the Experience
Finding your style is the first step to creating the experience. While you will want to please everyone, stay focused on your highlight moments, the tone of the event and your budget. The genre and playlist should consider variety and the crowd; however, the highlight moments, such as the ceremony, cake cutting and first dance, should be all about you.
Budget will be a factor. Planners recommend spending about ten percent of your budget on the wedding music. A smaller budget might struggle to make the live band experience a reality. A live band exists on the opposite end of the cost spectrum as the DJ. They both play the same music, but with a very different experience and price tag to match. Talent, popularity and time can drive the cost up or down for both. The average DJ costs between $800 and $2,000. In contrast, the average cost of a live band is between $2,500 and $6,000. Keep in mind that you can pay more or less for your talent. You might have live music during the ceremony and DJ during the reception.
Choosing Your Wedding Music
Most planners recommend a mix of genres and music that caters to everyone, but you should also have a main style that fits your theme. Choosing the playlist and the experience you want to deliver it are equally important. You will probably choose a different genre of music for the ceremony than the cocktail hour and reception. You might choose a string duo, flute trio, piano, sax, violin, harp or quartet during the ceremony, and choose classy jazz or classical for the cocktail hour. Depending on the vibe of your reception, you might want to create a modern club-style playlist for contrast.
A special song should be chosen for each highlight moment. You should plan songs for the grand entrance, the spotlight dance, the first dance, the parent spotlight dances, open dance floor, cake cutting ceremony, bouquet toss and any other special rituals. If you want to personalize the experience, you might choose your parents’ first dance song as yours or a different entrance song for each of your attendants.
Live Wedding Music
There is no comparison to the live band when it comes to crowd motivation, sophistication and charisma. Live wedding music adds life to the occasion. It breaks down the barriers between genre and decade, and can be entertaining and appreciated as an art by all.
Types of Bands
Big band
Jazz band
Country band
Cover band
Latin band
Reggae band
Oldies band
Rock band
Swing band
Traditional wedding band
Top 40 band
Choosing a Wedding DJ
A wedding DJ is not pressing play on the radio. They provide a unique mixing of tracks and fading between them with special effects. Every DJ will have a different style that can include light shows and sometimes live performers. While a band might take breaks between sets, the DJ doesn’t stop until the party does. The DJ has the ability to create a club-style feeling that can maintain the energy of the room. A live band has limitations with a smaller library of wedding music, while a DJ has an expansive library and more variety.
The Crystal Ballroom
The Crystal Ballroom is an all-inclusive wedding venue with an in-house design team that is dedicated to bringing your vision to life. Weddings at Crystal Ballroom include all of the furnishings, décor and staff services to make your dream wedding possible. Create your entertainment experience at a ballroom designed just for you.
