The musician you and your fiancé(e) choose for your wedding will have the essential tasks of entertaining your guests, telling the story of your love, and otherwise sculpting the mood and atmosphere of the entire evening. This can make choosing the right wedding musicians a daunting task, but narrowing down your candidates can be made easier by following some simple steps. Keep the following in mind when trying to decide whom to hire and the process will go much, much smoother.
Tips for Choosing Wedding Musicians in Toronto
Decide Where Music Will Be Featured
There are several key points during the wedding where music is commonly featured: before, during and after the ceremony, cocktail hour, dinner and reception. Each section works best with different types of audio, and you are going to want to make sure your wedding musicians in Toronto and elsewhere are able to meet the different needs that will be at play. Getting a flexible and versatile musical act will let you cover all your bases in one package.
Consider Your Venue
You should make sure the type of music you want is compatible with the venue you will be using for your wedding. Some venues, like churches, may place limits on the kinds of music that they will allow you to play. Other locations might have structures that support certain kinds of acoustics over others, may be having other events going on that mean you need to be mindful about sound, or may have other considerations of which both you and your wedding musicians will need to be cognizant.
Define Your Style
Your wedding music is a personal expression that encompasses the whole evening. The musician, therefore, is going to need to be someone who can work with you to help bring your vision to life. Are there any songs you absolutely want to showcase? Any moods you want to convey? Does your wedding have a theme you want incorporated? Defining the style of music you want will make finding a wedding musician a more fluid and collaborative process.
Use a Shortlist
Choosing wedding musicians can mean you have to look at dozens of potential candidates; fully researching each one can take up time better spent on other parts of wedding planning. Make use of a shortlist that winnows down candidates after each phase of selection so you can make the process more efficient. For instance, you may start with 15 candidates and begin by seeing who is available during your wedding date. From this, you then see who has the selection you want, who has experience, who has references, and so on, until you end up with a smaller selection that can be used to make the final decision.
Professionalism and Quality
When choosing a wedding musician in Toronto, you naturally want to go with acts that can be professional and deliver a quality performance. This is true whether you want your musicians for the wedding ceremony or reception—and if you can get the same performers for both, all the better.
You can get an idea of a candidate's professionalism by speaking to their past clients through referrals or by looking them up on review sites. It is also common for performers to have sample videos available so you can look and listen to them online. When possible, however, you should assess quality through a live performance. This may involve visiting a venue the musicians perform at or asking for a small piece during a meeting.
Experience
Ideally, your wedding musicians will have extensive experience as performers. Although the length of time a group has been performing does not automatically translate into assurances of quality, there are certain elements that can't be replicated through talent alone. Experience means your musicians have done numerous weddings of different styles, lengths, and themes, and understand how to adjust and adapt to the needs of individual couples. The longer a group has been performing also means they will have more experience with unexpected events and can have developed a series of responses to solve or prevent different sources of disruptions.
Rapport
This ties into professionalism but relates more to things like how well you "click" with the musicians. Developing a strong rapport with your candidate is important for more than just feeling like they're someone you could sit down for coffee with. The type of rapport you have affects how well your performer can understand your needs and preferences. This will be important when trying to make special requests or get cooperation with specific ideas you have for the performance. A strong rapport means that the performer understands that your wedding is special and unique to you and that they won't treat it as "yet another job,"
Get It in Writing
Any wedding musician you hire must be able to give you a written, signed agreement that outlines elements like price, length of performance, and other provisions that are important for any professional arrangement. These contracts are not only a common-sense business practice, but they also help let you know what the plan is in event of something unexpected. The contract should explain what the procedure would be if, for instance, something prevents one or all of the performers from attending (illness, injury, weather, etc.). Being able to know that there is a clear backup plan can take a huge burden off your mind.
Quality Equipment
When choosing wedding musicians, pay attention to any additional equipment they use such as sound systems, amplifiers, staging, and so on, whether provided by the venue or by the performers themselves. Understanding how well the equipment is maintained, as well as who will be responsible for setting up and running the tech, is just as important as seeing the overall quality of the tools themselves. Make sure you know what kinds of troubleshooting services may be included as well.
Find Top Wedding Musicians in Toronto with bb Blanc
bb Blanc is an award winning, live events company based in Toronto. We pride ourselves on "Creating Event Magic" through the use of the latest technology for audiovisual and staging production, presentation support as well as through a number of talented live entertainers. Our roster of musicians and musical acts can cover any genre, mood, or generation of song and sound to produce spectacular and one-of-a-kind performances. Unsure on what songs you want? Pick our brains for advice, and our musicians and audio consultants will work with you to devise the perfect, musical evening.
For more information on bb Blanc and the unique additions we can bring to your gatherings and special occasions, feel free to contact us at 416-360-0440 or at info@bbblanc.com.
