Playing weddings . . .

[shniggens]

I've been requested to play a friends wedding again.

 

Just a question as far as what's appropriate -

 

Since I don't play weddings much, nor do I play classical that often anymore (and other wedding type material), I'm going to need to play with sheet music.

 

Is playing off of sheets appropriate for a wedding?

 

I know that since it's a friend and all it shouldn't matter. I'm just curious what the protocol would be for these type of gigs.

[Botch.]

Nothing wrong with playing off sheets, unless its an outdoor reception .

I've sworn off weddings for the rest of my life; bride's mothers are COMPLETELY INSANE!!

[Dave Horne]

I agree that using music is OK.

 

I also agree that working for family is not a good idea.

[Pursuitboy]

I have been playing weddings for many years. Always used music. Weddings are different than bars or concerts. You are not usually the center of attention, the bride and groom are. Keep them happy and dancin and you have done your job. DJs have really killed the band buss. here in Chicago. Even the top wedding groups are struggling for work

[MikeT156]

Quote by pursuitboy:

-----------------------------

DJs have really killed the band buss.

-----------------------------

DJ's have really killed live musicians work period. Smaller clubs that use to run solo acts and duo's use DJ's. Sometimes the club will have its own house system setup and just hire someone to come in and "spin disks", pay is low. Some other places that use to run entertainment went the "Sports Bar" route and knocked off live entertainment. It's cheaper to install a lot of TV's and get a bunch of sports channels on the tube than pay for live music.

 

Mike T.

[gangsu]

Shniggens, I assumed you were talking about doing the ceremony. The only time I wouldn't necessarily bring music, would be a very ordinary church wedding and the couple has no idea what they want. I can play no name organ sounds for hours that nobody would think to listen to. Otherwise, definitely bring music!

[Dave Horne]

The comment made about not being the center of attention at a reception is very important. A lot of musicians still continue to play loudly while the guests are eating. I don't play weddings anymore (it's a different culture over here), but keeping the bride and groom happy is priority number 1 though keep in mind that the father of the bride will be paying you.

 

Perhaps this is as good a time as any to provoke those musical parasites, you love them, you hate them, you wish it were legal to murder them ... sorry, got carried away - DJs. There are very few jobs in music where not actually being able to play an instrument or read notation, for that matter, is a plus. _Every_ DJ I have every heard insists on damaging the hearing of everyone within visual range of his speakers. Parasites with very little self awareness.

 

DJs should be banned from this little corner of the Keyboard forum.

[DafDuc]

Yeah, brides' moms are the worst. Especially when you work for a pastor who won't back you up.

 

Weddings pay well at our church, but I happily hand them off to our diva who actually likes that sort of thing. She calls one of her accompanist pals, everyone's happy.

 

I grill the bride/groom/mom first - if they're looking for a showpiece queen-for-a-day photo opp ceremony, I hand em off. But if they want church, I'll bend over backwards to make it happen. About 1 in 4 does, so far.

 

Daf

[ITGITC]

Originally posted by Dave Horne:

I don't play weddings anymore (it's a different culture over here.)

Dave, can you expound on this please?

 

On the other issue - I was at a wedding reception the other day. A DJ was there. I have to say that he played great music, appropriate for the occasion, that wasn't too loud. He also had a very good speaking voice and announced the wedding party with aplomb. I liked him.

 

Normally I would chime in with all the negative comments I can say about DJs. However, this guy was good. Good DJs certainly do have a place in the market, especially with the diverse assortment of music they can offer.

 

When my corporate band plays a party, the DJ does his thing before, after, and between sets. It works out well. He doesn't play any of the tunes on our set list. This keeps the flow of the party going and people on the dance floor.

 

I will also add that I've heard many bands that just can't play wedding receptions because they either don't have the right selection of music, they play too loudly, they don't dress appropriately, or they don't know how to introduce the wedding party.

 

There is a certain formality to playing wedding receptions. I've played a LOT of them. I won't do it again. The reason is that I've grown out of my tuxedo! And, as Botch mentioned, the mother of the bride can be really hard to work with. (... an understatement!) The upside of receptions is that they pay well. Unfortunately, we were connected with an agent who was unscrupulous. It made for bad relations all 'round.

 

Now I play music only as a stress-buster. I don't wear tuxedos and I don't put up with the mother of the bride.

 

Life is good.

 

Tom

[Dave Horne]

In general, the Dutch do not follow the Long Island wedding protocol. There are catering places dedicated just for weddings and events, but in general the Dutch do not follow what I grew up with in Philadelphia and later, in upstate New York.

 

You might play a wedding, but for the most part, it's just another job with none of the 'And now Ladies and Gentleman, for the first time in public, the new Mr. and Mrs. Smits.

 

It's basically just a party and they might have music. The Dutch, at least the Dutch I know, might hire a three, four or five piece group more on the jazz swing side rather than a rock group. Bear in mind, I'm generalizing and I'm friends mostly with people close to my age; I'm 54.

 

The announcing of the Bride's Maids and the Ushers is more a Long Island tradition I think ... and I don't miss it.

 

By the way, I probably have a work sheet for wedding announcing I can dig up if anyone's interested. (It's probably Win zipped away in a AmiPro format.)

[ITGITC]

Originally posted by Dave Horne:

(It's probably Win zipped away in a AmiPro format.)

 

AmiPro, Dave? Is that like WORDSTAR?

 

Ummmmmm, thanks for the offer for the work sheet for wedding announcing. However, I hope I'll never need it. Like I said, the money's good, but the hassle-factor is too high and the tuxedo is too small!

 

Tom

[shniggens]

Yeah, I'm doing the ceremony ONLY.

 

The couple getting married are the dance superstar types. They will probably have one helluva groovy DJ for their reception.

[gangsu]

Sometimes I'm really grateful to the DJ. Just recently I was part of a 3-piece hired to provide classical dinner music. We're into our Haydn trios and Handel sonatas (quite delightful, I thought) and suddenly the boss tells us to drop the classical *** and pick it up a bit. We looked at eachother, I mean what could we do?? We had nothing else. So we played only Rondos at double time (and ran out of music real quick). My most frantic gig in recent memory. Everybody was happy to turn it over to the DJ.

[gangsu]

shniggens, do you have to play alone? That's kind of a drag. I always try to talk the couple into a soloist of some kind.

[ITGITC]

Originally posted by gangsu:

shniggens, do you have to play alone? That's kind of a drag. I always try to talk the couple into a soloist of some kind.

Sue, don't tell ANYBODY but I've heard that you can make a lot of money at these functions - playing alone... in drag!

 

 

http://www.trailertrashdoll.com/images/redhead.jpghttp://www.trailertrashdoll.com/images/blondehead.jpg

 

THE DRAG QUEENS

 

He'll be the best girlfriend you ever had. You can hit the thrift stores and buy up every sequin in sight. Then after a few minutes with a glue gun and a sewing machine, and a few hours putting on make-up, youíll be ready to hit the town.

 

 

Go down to the local piano bar and get ready to sing torch songs. You'll always be turning heads, and after four or five martinis you'll be lapping up the attention, like a glass of water in the desert. Just remember, never light your own cigarette, and the higher the hair the closer to God!

 

 

And just in case you think I'm making this up, HERE\'S THE LINK.

 

Is There Gas In The Car?

[marino]

Originally posted by Dave Horne:

working for family is not a good idea.

I've only played weddings for relatives or close friends, finding myself in the following situations:

 

- For my sister's wedding (on pipe organ), she forced me to go thru entire books of classical music, before finally choosing a couple of Bach fugues, a toccata by Scarlatti and some other horribly difficult classical pieces, to be learned in about two days;

 

- A close friend asked me to play at his cousin's wedding, but the church had no organ... in short, I had to provide instrument and amplification, and learn a big amount of baroque and classical music. The infuriating part was that my friend did NOT came to the wedding..!

 

- Best of all was an old-time friend, who asked me for his wedding to play the orchestral reduction of Haendel's 'Rejoycing' on the pipe organ, with a soprano singing the lead part. Well, that singer made me TRANSPOSE all that madness, with only a quick read-through as a reharsal!

 

It's all true - and *none* of those gigs paid a dime.

[shniggens]

Well I sure as hell ain't doing that kind of crazy shit!!!

[gangsu]

I don't blame you!

 

That's funny Marino mentioned the Rejoicing. I had a violinist show up on Sunday with his solo line to that same piece, so I figured what the heck I think I know it well enough to tag along, go for it! Well geez, that thing meanders all over the place. Took me by surprise! And I was in the original key.

 

Gas, now I know why my mother never let me have a Ken doll.

[Dave Horne]

Originally posted by gangsu:

I don't blame you!

 

That's funny Marino mentioned the Rejoicing. I had a violinist show up on Sunday with his solo line to that same piece, so I figured what the heck I think I know it well enough to tag along, go for it! Well geez, that thing meanders all over the place. Took me by surprise! And I was in the original key.

You tagged along without first asking if it were OK to join in?

[gangsu]

You tagged along without first asking if it were OK to join in?

hah, I guess that sounds rude. By violinist, I meant "person who owns violin, and can almost play". By tagging along, said violinist had the confidence to proceed. It's not impossible to "tag along" to. It's almost fiddle music. Basically scales supported by cadences that jump around every 2nd beat til you finally get to the end. But wait, that's not really the end, let's take the whole thing from the top in the dominant key!.... whatever. Don't worry. Violinist's mom was proud, and violinist is bringing more music next week!

[guzman]

I enjoy playing wedding gigs both as a soloist during the ceremony, and with my 5 piece band at receptions. At a ceremony, you basically play background music while the guests are arriving, you play a couple of notable songs for the precessional and recessional, then you're done. It only gets dicey if you need to perform a solo piece or accompany a vocalist (gasp) in the middle of the ceremony. Many times a piano is provided so there is little or no setup involved.

 

As for wedding receptions, they are great gigs. I'm amazed that people diss them. You show up an hour before the gig, haul your stuff in, set up, play for 3-4 hours and leave. The pay is good and everyone is generally in a good mood. Because there is a wide variance in ages, you get to play a wide variety of music (or at least you should). We often get invited to eat and imbibe as well. I've been playing them as a weekend warrior for 20 years - they account for about 50% of my gigs.

[Ed Coury]

I love to play live, have played in wedding bands for more receptions that I can remember.

 

That being said, who would call DJ's "parasites"??

 

Unless you are sure every gig you played resulted in fees going to the composers of the music you performed, then you might be, by your own definition, a leech as well ;-)