band or DJ?

emily.ayala

Are you ladies having a band or a DJ? I see pros and cons to both and I am not sure which I'd rather do.

Ideally, I would rather have a live band. I think it would be more fun, however, it seems like their music would be more limited, seeing as though they would have to learn any music that is not on their set list.

I've also heard a live band is more expensive, but I haven't looked into it, so I don't know if this is true.

I would love to hear your opinions. Also, if you have any recommendations for a band or DJ, I'd love to hear those, as well!

lcarp203

We went with a DJ.  I was also leaning toward a live band at first because I absolutely LOVE live music.  However, I went to a friends wedding who had a live band and I thought that there was too big of a delay in music between songs to keep the party going. 

What it will  probably depend on is the feel you want for your wedding.  The friend who hired the band absolutely loved how it turned out.  For me, I would have been highly disappointed if it was my wedding.  They used an IPOD for the dinner portion of the reception to cut cost because the band was around $3K just to play the dance part of the night and also as she walked down the isle.   Song quality varied and therefore, certain songs were not heard during the dinner.  For me, It was a lot of questions and uncertainties that I did not want to deal with on the day of my wedding.  The DJs that I ended up meeting with all seemed very familiar with weddings and the MC duties (addressed in next paragraph) that they would perform.  They assured me that things would flow and that the party would go off without a hitch!

The other thing you would want to be aware of is that the DJ is your master of ceremonies.  They keep the night on track and going.  They announce your wedding party as they enter the reception, announce cake cutting and bouquet toss (along with other events of the night).  The wedding I went to with the band did not seem to flow well because they did not hire anyone to be the MC at the event.  Some bands may do the MC duties, I would just make sure you verify with them.  Or, if you have a DOC they may take on the MC role as well. 

Overall, if you do decide to use a band, I would just do your research and ask a lot of questions.  As for a DJ, we went with Teffanie at Face the Music DJ.  She came highly recommended on by many ladies on this board.

FutureMrsL.R.Allen

I am having a DJ.  I would have loved to hire The Hamptons, but they were about five times as much as a DJ and I could not justify that.  Many live bands are to cheesy for my taste, but I think if it is a really great live band and they are in your budget, I would go for it!

belgirl

I am having a jazz band and the band leader (who is a friend of mine) is the MC.  They have a huge songbook to choose songs from, so I am not that worried about what they can play.  (they can play other genres besides jazz)  In my case, it was more reasonable in cost than a DJ, but it all depends on how big the band is, how many hours they are playing etc. etc.

emily.ayala

That is all really great advice! Thank you ladies! I think I will do more research and crunch the numbers and see how it comes out.

Agentmysterycat

We had BOTH!! ! Lol. DH is really into the local music scene so we had connections! It was so cool to have both...and we actually had two bands! One for cocktail hour and then one to mix it up with the dj during the reception!

NillaWafer10

We are having a string quartet for the ceremony and a live pianist for dinner.  The dancing music will be provided by a DJ.  FI's mom is highly musical, so she took over that part of the planning haha!