Winter 2020

BRIDES AND GROOMS-TO-BE LET’S TALK MUSIC
Wedding planning can be overwhelming and many don’t know where to start. Music is such an
essential part of your wedding day. It is the soundtrack to the best day of your lives. I’m here to
give you some advice and tips on how to plan your wedding entertainment without the stress.
HERE IS A BREAKDOWN OF
WHERE MUSIC WILL FIT
INTO YOUR BIG DAY
CEREMONY
Your ceremony music is a special element
of your wedding - it can make you smile,
cry and give you goosebumps. The
ceremony includes some of the most
unforgettable moments that you will
remember fondly for the rest of your
lives. From walking up the aisle, lighting
your unity candle, signing the register
and walking out as a married couple.
Your personalised song choices will make
those moments all the more special and
unforgettable.
DRINKS RECEPTION
Drinks reception entertainment is
becoming more and more common at
Irish weddings and rightly so. Drinks
reception entertainment starts when your
guests arrive at your reception venue
until they are all called for the meal. Your
guests are kept entertained while you and
your husband are getting your pictures
taken. It’s a great chance for people to
relax, mingle and stay together in a fun
and lively atmosphere.
BAND
Nothing beats a live band to get the party
started. You want a band that specialise in
weddings and that will keep your guests
on the dancefloor all night with. A good
wedding band will play a wide variety to
suit all ages. You want your guests to be
complaining about sore feet the next day,
that’s the sign of a good wedding band!
DISCO
After dancing the night away to your
wedding band you need a good DJ that
will seamlessly take over and keep them
dancing all night long with all the floor
70 | SAVE THE DATE with Teambride.ie
fillers. Many bands offer a DJ package
too so ask your band first if this is an
option.
10 TIPS FOR PLANNING
YOUR WEDDING
ENTERTAINMENT
Don’t delay, as soon as you know your
wedding date and venue start looking at
wedding singers, bands etc and deciding
what you want. Wedding singers and
bands have bookings up to three years in
advance so do not delay in booking your
entertainment to avoid disappointment.
Especially if your wedding is at peak times
in the year or if your wedding is at the
weekend these dates book up quickly.
Research your wedding entertainment,
if they are professional well established
wedding suppliers they will be on most
social media platforms. Check out their
videos and reviews from other brides and
grooms who have booked them in the
past.
Talk to your celebrant. Find out the
boundaries for your ceremony music as
some may only want hymns to be sung
others may be more flexible with song
choices. Know what you can and can’t
have before you start picking songs to
avoid disappointment.
Consult with your wedding singer/ band.
Any professional singer or band will be
willing to meet you prior to your wedding
and advise and help you in any way they
can.
Don’t be afraid to tell your wedding
singer, band or DJ what you want or
more importantly what you don’t want.
If you have certain songs that you cringe
at the thought of it being played at
your wedding. Make a list of songs you
don’t want played and give them to your
wedding entertainment suppliers.
My advice would be that there are many
areas of your wedding where you can
make shortcuts but music is not one
of them - it really is a vital part of your
wedding day.
Create a playlist on Spotify or make a
cd of songs that you are thinking about
having for your ceremony or first dance.
Play them in the house or in the car and
through time you will eliminate songs and
decide on what you want.
Cost will vary for wedding singers/bands.
Factors that will contribute will be how
many people there are - solo, 2, 3, 4, 5
piece etc, travel costs, live vs backing
tracks, peak dates such as New Year’s
Eve for example. There are so many top
class professional wedding singers and
bands in the North West you don’t need
to pay extra for travel when you have the
cream of wedding entertainment on your
doorstep.
First dance - Talk to your band tell them
what song you want and decide if you
want your first dance played live by the
band or played as a track. Pick a song
that means something to you both and
also a song that you are comfortable to
dance/sway to. Practice dancing to your
first dance prior to the wedding to make
sure your comfortable dancing to it this
will avoid any awkward stepping on each
others toes!.
Music is one of the main things that your
guests will notice. Don’t underestimate
the importance of your entertainment.
Make you wedding entertainment a
priority happy guests = happy couple.
In saying that it is your day pick
professional suppliers that appeal to all
ages but also suit your taste in music.
If you have any wedding entertainment
questions I’d be happy to help, email me
on grainnegaviganmusic@gmail.com.