Frequently asked questions about bands

How far in advance of my wedding should I book my band?

It can be very tempting to book a band the moment that you decide to get married, and well-meaning friends and relatives will no doubt tell you that if you don't book a band straightaway, you'll never find anything.

If the timescale between proposal and marriage is very short, then this is sensible advice. However, most couples get engaged between one and two years before they actually get married, and the further in advance you book a band, the greater the risk that they will undergo significant line-up changes in the interim, or that the singer you so admired is, by your wedding day, the proud mother of newborn triplets!

If you aim to book your band around a year in advance, you will certainly have a wide selection from which to choose: if you are not getting married on a Saturday you can safely leave it even nearer to the day than this. If you decide to book over a year in advance, remember to ask the band or agency what their policy is in the event of line-up changes and band pregnancy!

Can I see the band play before I book them?

If you would like to see a band play prior to booking them, we'll try to arrange this.

However, the bands that we work with do not generally play public engagements (ie no pubs and clubs) so generally you'll need to go to someone else's wedding. Not unreasonably, most bridal couples aren't too keen on strangers dropping in on their celebrations (how would you feel!), so this isn't always easy to arrange.

Also, bear in mind that most bands have relatively few engagements between January and the end of April (the time of year that most bookings are made), and since we're unable to book bands provisionally, by the time you get to see the band, they may well no longer be available to play at your wedding.

The first time around 98% of our clients actually see their band play live in on their wedding day.

Having said all this, we prefer happy clients (!), so if you have particular concerns, please tell us, and we'll do everything we can to reassure you!

Do your bands play requests?

Yes, if at all possible, particularly in respect of your first dance.

Regarding the rest of their playlist, firstly please remember that they're bands and not DJs! However, if the particular song is in their repertoire, and they are notified in advance - when we write to you, we will send a selected repertoire list for each band - the band will do what they can to include a few requests into their sets.

Will we need to provide amplification and lighting for the band?

No. All the pop bands we arrange provide all their own sound equipment, and many bring their own lighting too.

How long will they play for?

As a general rule, most of the bands we use play either three forty-five minute sets or two one hour sets, with a break between each set, although some pop bands will play for as much as four hours with just one break in the middle.

And what happens between their sets?

All bands provide a CD/minidisk player (as well as appropriate CDs/minidisks) to play during their breaks. Some couples prefer to compile their own CDs or, to ensure that the dancing continues all evening, to engage a DJ to alternate with their band (we can help with this).

Isn't it much cheaper to find my own band on the internet and deal with them directly?

You can certainly find inexpensive bands via the internet - the problem lies in finding a good one.

If you work with bands regularly, you'll already have a good idea of what to look for, and what the danger signs are. But booking bands is not as easy as it sounds, and are you really prepared to use your wedding as a testing ground to find out if you'd make a good agent, simply to save a few pounds?

Most of the top jazz and pop bands don't bother to have an internet presence because they prefer to let agencies and consultancies secure their engagements and sort out the arrangements, leaving them simply to deal with the performance aspect. You will not find any of the bands that we recommend on the internet.