Why Hire A Live Band?
With so many options available for entertainment these days, we thought we’d look into the top 5 reasons for why you would want to hire a live band for your big event, whether it be a wedding, party, or corporate event. Although a band can sometimes be the more expensive option, most of the time the right band can be a worthwhile investment. For a lot of people, there’s nothing like the spectacle of live music to transform a decent event into a truly memorable one; people will be talking about that great party band you booked at your wedding for years to come! Let’s jump in and and allow our guitarist Paul to present the top 5 reasons for why you would hire a live band for your event.
1. It’s A Great Experience For Your Guests
Any kind of music at your event is going to be appreciated, whether it be simple background music to set the mood, or a DJ pumping out party friendly hits to fill the dance-floor. That being said, nothing comes close to actually watching a group of musicians delivering a passionate performance on their instruments in sync with one another. There’s something about witnessing a talented band with a live drummer that makes people want to get up and dance, and a truly great band can captivate an entire room full of people, sending everyone home with smiles on their faces and heads full of great memories. Perhaps it could have something to do with the rich, full sound that a live band provides, as well as the personal element of witnessing real people making music for the enjoyment of others.
2. Live Bands Can Provide A Specialist Service
It may be the case that your event requires something a bit different in order to take it to the next level. Perhaps you’re looking for a tribute act, in order to give your guests a taste of what it would be like to witness the real thing performing for them. Maybe you could be looking for a decade themed band, such as an eighties band, if your guests are all fans of a certain era. It could even be that you’re looking for a band to perform music from a specific culture, country or background in order to make your event feel special. However, it’s not just musically where a themed band can provide a specialist service, but visually too. Using the eighties tribute act as an example, just a quick Google search of said term will throw up all kinds of acts dressed in spandex, sporting some truly amazing wigs for good measure. You can bet that a band that is as impressive visually as it is musically is sure to be the talking point of the evening for you and your guests.
3. Live Bands Can Interact And Engage With The Audience
I recently played at a wedding with a different band where, during his guitar solo, the other guitarist stepped out into the crowd and started partying with the other guests, getting them to perform all the air guitar actions while he ripped it up during “Don’t Look Back In Anger.” It was such a cool moment and it really got the guests engaged, thus encouraging more people to get on the floor when they saw how much fun everyone else was having. The morale of the story is that a good live band can interact and engage with the audience to such an extent where they feel part of the show, which in turn is going to ensure they have a much better night as a result. It can be something as simple as getting the audience to sing along to one of the more anthemic numbers in the set, or taking pictures with the crowd, or accommodating requests that aren’t typically in a band’s repertoire. The point is, there are many ways that a good live band has an advantage in this field that makes them worth the effort to hire.
4. Live Music Is Good For Your Health!
“Music is the medicine of the mind” – John A. Logan.
It’s always good to bring a bit of science into the equation, and while it may not be the first reason you’d look into hiring a live band, recent studies have shown that live music is actually good for people’s health and well-being. According to researchers, watching live music could help reduce people’s levels of stress hormones, including cortisol. Although the therapeutic effects of listening and singing along to music have been known for a while, it’s only in the last year or two that scientists have seriously looked into the positive mood altering effects of live music, as evidenced by a study from Imperial College Of London, which found that the cortisol levels of 117 people decreased after witnessing a performance from composer Eric Whitacre. Also, don’t forget that all the dancing you and your guests will be doing to the live band of your choice will potentially have the same effect on your body as doing 30 minutes on a treadmill, so you’ll be getting plenty of exercise in and burning calories without even realising it! Two great reasons to give your guests when they ask you why you chose live music as your entertainment of choice for your event!
And finally…
5. (Most) Live Bands Enjoy What They Do
From my experience, the vast majority of bands that I have come across in my time are in it to make people happy by playing music that their audience want to hear. For most musicians, there is no better feeling than watching a crowd enjoying themselves and having fun to the music that they are playing, whether it is their own material or a cover of another artist’s song, which is a large part of the reason that a lot of us learned to play an instrument and joined a band in the first place. A live band’s love of their craft not only comes through in their performance, which will not go unnoticed by your guests, but you’ll also find that your chosen act will be more than happy to accommodate any special requests you have for your event, whether you want them to learn a song, start or finish a bit later, or, most importantly, play on a bit longer and keep the party going! For most musicians, it will be a pleasure for them to perform at your chosen event, meaning they’re more likely to go the extra mile to make sure you have a great time.
So, in conclusion, though it may sometimes be a little bit more money to book a live band, it’s definitely worth it in the long run. With the right band, you and your guests are guaranteed a great night!
17 Responses
24karat played at our wedding this summer. What a fantastic night thanks to them! Great play list, amazing sound and they made the evening a success. The dance floor was never empty. Highly recommend.
Thank you, we certainly enjoyed ourselves and still talk about your wedding now!
[…] daunting task deciding what you’re actually going to play in a function band. You’ll be hired to play live at weddings, corporate events and parties, which means that, ideally, you’ll be […]
I like how you point out that a live band will love what they do and that love will be obvious to the guests. My best friend is getting married in about three months, and I’m her maid of honor. She’s put me in charge of the music, so I want to make sure it’ll be good. It seems like it’d be a good idea for me to find someone who can play live wedding music at the wedding.
Thanks Amanda, a good live band can help make or break any wedding and create a great atmosphere for guests. Good luck in choosing a great band for your best friend!
Go and see 24 Kart play, they have lots of local pub gigs. They need to play the sort of music your guests will enjoy, they should be competent, obviously enjoying themselves, but most importantly engaging with the audience.
When we were looking for live music at our wedding we spoke to the manager of our local irish pub, they have lots of good live music, he recommended half a dozen acts. We went to see most of them, would have been happy with the nine piece funk/soul outfit, and an acoustic duo, but were delighted with the solo act we chose.
Best of luck hope you find a good act and your friends wedding goes well.
We were married fifteen years ago (is it really that long?) and assumed that we would have a DJ in the evening as everyone else seemed to do. We spoke to a few, all were uninspiring, “I play what I play”, “it’s all on my computer”, “do you really need to see my playlist?”, nobody asked us about ourselves, what we liked, or the guests (we were in our 40’s at the time).
I have played in bands, and my wife is Irish so we decided that for the event to go well we had to look at live music irrespective of the cost, and spent a month going to see live acts. The great nine piece funk/soul band we saw at a local Jazz club would have cost nearly twice the cost of the DJ’s, but most acts were similar in price.
We’re glad we went our choice. A solo act, he is also currently fronting the latest incarnation of 70’s glam pop/rock band. We chatted to him in the interval when we saw him play a local venue. Met with him again to agree the format, discuss what we enjoyed, agree a playlist for the intervals. He liaised with the venue to sort out all the logisitics.
On the night he was set up in plenty of time. Half the night was given up to requests from the floor, if he did not know a song and the requestor was willing to sing he would accompany them. My friends and I did a couple of songs. He had lots of banter, involved the guests. During the interval he entertained the ladies of a certain age with stories of when he was in the backing band of a certain 60’s hearthrob. Everybody danced, staff included.
Five years later we had an anniversary meal with a few friends at the hotel, the manager told us that she still remembered a wonderful evening it had been. I’ve since put a band together again, we have done a few weddings and celebrations, but a couple of years ago we played my daughter’s wedding which was so special.
Don’t bother with a DJ, just find a good live act and you won’t go wrong.
I really like what you said about how live bands can really engage with the guests and encourage more people to get on the floor and have fun. My sister is getting married soon and is considering hiring a live band to perform. Thank you for the information about how they can get people to sing along and accommodating requests, all of which makes them well worth the effort to hire.
Thanks for the comment Khorae, we hope your sister chooses a band that will help make her wedding one to remember!
[…] Feel My Face” and all the way to “Uptown Funk” at the end, the audience simply didn’t stop dancing. We had a great time and would like to thank everyone who came for making it such a memorable gig. […]
It got me when you mentioned that having a live band will be able to give you a visually appealing party other than the music that they offer. I guess I will be hiring one for the birthday of my daughter since she is going to celebrate her 16th birthday this year. She specifically requested that the theme will be of the 80’s music since she grew up with their music in our house.
That’s great Millie, we hope your daughter’s 16th birthday is one to remember and that you find the perfect band.
I have to agree with you that nothing is better than seeing a group of musicians performing on stage since the passion is there and affects the audience. Aside from this, we can actually request a song from them whenever we want to. I will consider hiring a musician for my sister’s wedding. After all, she is the type to request for a song whenever something good comes to mind.
There’s nothing like seeing a bunch of talented musicians perform live! We hope that your sister’s wedding goes well and, if you do hire a live band, they play her favourite song!
I liked what you said about live bands being able to interact with the audience. I remember being at a small concert and the band that was playing started flirting with my friend while playing. I think that it can provide all sorts of entertainment along with music, which could make any wedding more exciting.
We love those little impromptu interactions with our audience too, it makes the whole live music experience that much more enjoyable.
GOOD POST