It often happens to me during the first specialist consultation with the different wedding couples I meet to point out to them some critical work issues related, to the location they have chosen and of which they did not suspect the existence.
I am not doing this to demotivate the bride and groom or to ruin the movie they had already imagined, but to figure out with them how to realize, musically speaking, the very high expectations they place on our service, which, however, is sometimes made difficult or almost impossible precisely because of some villa and restaurant owners who are not interested in making their facilities available for the purpose of meeting the needs or expectations of the bride and groom; They aim exclusively to sell their product and services while glossing over some technical organizational aspects that in some cases can, as just mentioned, go to strongly penalize the normal course of your wedding by undermining the work of the chosen professionals.
Therefore, I decided in this article to draw up a real decalogue to help you choose your wedding venue not only on the basis of cost, aesthetics or the emotional impact it can arouse in you, but I want to help you look at it from the entertainment and musician’s point of view.
In fact, in the first inspection you do, the owners of the different facilities know how to very well highlight the strengths of their location while glossing over the weaknesses to avoid giving you pause or asking uncomfortable questions.
But when the bride and groom come to us for consultation, the analysis of the location is one of the cornerstones of the meeting; Analysis in which, thanks to our experience gained over the years, we go with the bride and groom to structure a musical project according to their needs and expectations but respecting the stakes imposed by the location.
And it is precisely at these junctures that limits often emerge that the spouses did not know, limits that had not been specified or summarily described.
Stakes that are usually overlooked but can literally PENALTY different parts of the day or the long-awaited evening party at your wedding.
This article is dedicated precisely to those newlyweds who dream of an unforgettable wedding.
That is why choosing a professional, specialized in weddings, is crucial; He will surely have already worked at your location or during the inspection will be able to identify any critical issues right away.
If you analyze well in advance, optimal solutions can be studied for you and also for the venue thus avoiding the RISK of seeing your wedding ruined just because of a few misunderstandings with the venue you have chosen.
This article is borne out of firsthand experiences; Critical issues that, if one does not come prepared, can put even the most seasoned professional in trouble.
Among the most common cases:
- Management of misaligned staging schedules
- Inability to set up at planned locations
- Early music closure
- Volume limits
- Limitations in the use of planting.
- Overcharging for poor management of the loading unloading area
- Location with rooms or the active restaurant service
- Passage restrictions
These are just a few of the critical issues that can arise when we bring our work inside a location, but before I point out what questions to ask the owners to avoid nasty surprises I find it necessary to make a brief introduction.
Each owner, rightly, is “master in his own house” so it is only fair to respect the rules and directions that are imposed; There are musicians who think they can go to any location and bring their modus operandi regardless of the stakes imposed by the location.
This in addition to creating friction between the musician and the venue can also penalize the bride and groom.
In addition, there are musicians who do not realize that in order to recreate the right atmosphere at all times, the music must be at an ADAPTED volume.
At cocktail hour and lunch, a decidedly soft level will suffice, a pleasant background to listen to so that your guests can converse with each other in absolute peace.
During the pre-evening, the volume is turned up slightly and a more rhythmic genre is started to let people know that the evening party will begin shortly.
During the evening party, however, the volume becomes important.
If you have decided to hire a professional you surely expect a full-blown party with the volume at the right level to create an engaging atmosphere.
It is at this juncture that the “professional” often loses his or her grip on the situation, either because he or she is caught up in the party, or because he or she is intent on selecting the best pieces to entertain you, or because his or her alcohol level is also prohibitive it can happen that the volume is such that it becomes unbearable even for those who are dancing while at the same time preventing waiters and bartenders from hearing requests and being able to talk to each other.
Such things can hardly happen to a professional who has learned over the years to modulate his system and constantly monitor performance; However, it must be clarified with the owners how far one can go because sometimes out of inexperience of course the bride and groom just ask the usual 2 ritual questions:
- Can music be made?
- Until what time?
These are not bad questions but they may be answered by the location owner as an experienced salesperson, making you understand and not understand that there are limits but without obviously elaborating; So pay attention if they tell you:
“Until the X hour you can party quietly then you have to tone it down a bit.”
It lies in lowering the smartness a little bit, because if they told you that the professional who is working at a volume of 8 has to go down to 6 their statement would be correct, but if from 8 you have to go down to 2 it basically means shutting down the party and sending everyone home.
Or phrases such as “There is no time limit, as long as the volume is not too loud.”
Again, what is meant by “too high?” In most cases, even here the volume to be used so as not to disturb will be minimal; Party over and everyone goes home.
Or even “Outside you can make music until X hours then just move inside.”
Stopping the music to move the party to another area of the venue means shutting down the party because most of the people on the dance floor will not resume dancing, and certainly many of them will take the opportunity to say goodbye. Those who remain will then sit around and chat or at best you will be able to engage them in a final group karaoke.
Our job is not to demonize locations
and destroy your dreams; on the contrary, our job is to enhance them and do everything to ensure that your wedding is as you have always dreamed it would be;
But to succeed, we must be put in a position to work well, demonstrating our professionalism and ability otherwise the result will be:
- Seeing your friends and relatives disappointed and bitter about the early closure of the party.
- See your guests protesting that they were having a great time and have to go home.
- Seeing your guests with eyes full of disappointment because they had been waiting a long time for that party that ended too soon.
- Seeing your guests sitting in chairs with an empty dance floor because the music is not of the appropriate volume.
- Seeing the “professional” you have chosen devote more time to volume control instead of choosing the right music for your party.
- Seeing the location manager redress the professional every two seconds to turn down the volume.
You may be wondering then why some locations behave this way;
Of course, the reasons may be different:
- The location is also a hotel so at a certain time the music must be turned down (or turned off) otherwise the customers staying there will protest the disturbance.
- The location is located in a very populated area, so after a certain hour you cannot disturb the public peace.
- The caterer or restaurant has another wedding the next day so they would like to finish early to start preparations for the next day.
- You run two or more weddings at the same time, so music cannot mutually interfere.
- The owner of the venue is not particularly fond of disco music, so the classic “bass hit” annoys him, so much so that any volume might bother him or deem it “too loud.”
Many owners, I am sure, do this in good faith, some, on the other hand, fail to understand, that allowing the professional to work with peace of mind may also become a profit for them due to the indirect publicity the professional will give them whenever they happen to recommend a location to prospective brides and grooms.
So if you particularly care about your evening party being a success, the most immediate way to figure it out is to ask these 10 questions of the venue owner:
- Up to what time can music be made at normal working volumes?
- Is there a limit to the volume that can be used both inside and outside the location If yes, how many decibels are we talking about?
- After the maximum time limit, can you stay with background music? If yes, for how long?
- Are there other weddings at the same time at the same location?
- Does the caterer stay until the end of the party?
- Does the villa or restaurant have sensitive neighbors, or are there limitations of some kind?
- Are there rooms with guests from outside the wedding who will be staying that day?
- Does the restaurant or venue have active dinner service for guests outside the wedding?
- How many KWs does the location have? Have you ever had problems with other DJs about this?
- After the music is turned off, is there a minimum time for the DJ to leave the facility?
- Is the loading and unloading area adjacent or close to the party area?
- Are there passage constraints with instrumentation?
That said.
Now with this knowledge you can take a closer look at the coveted location of your wedding or you can visit our website www.weddingsymphony.it and go to the contact page to book a specialized consultation with our Paul and figure out what solutions to move toward in order to leave your guests with a pleasant, indeed, indelible memory of your wedding.
Remember that
“Marriage is a live movie. You can’t go wrong because you can’t buy a memory.”
We always say this to all our wedding couples.
A few simple tips combined with a dash of common sense in choosing the professional to whom you entrust the musical aspect of your wedding not just based on price will make your day a memorable event.
I am Paolo Furlan the first Wedding Music Planner in Veneto and founder of the Wedding Symphony music agency specializing in music for civil or religious ceremonies and music and entertainment for wedding receptions.
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