Wedding DJs are often asked to play music for the Wedding Ceremony when the budget isn’t there to hire live musicians, so of course, if a DJ is playing the ceremony music, Brides and Grooms can pick absolutely any music they want.
So, let’s say you love the idea of having classical music or an elegant feel to your ceremony and you would love to hire a string quartet but simply don’t have it in your budget. Hire the next best thing! Hire your DJ to play music recorded by a string quartet, the cost is roughly 25% of the cost of live musicians. Now please, don’t get me wrong, I am a trained classical singer and I love live music, nothing compares to it, and when you have the budget, I absolutely encourage you to hire one of our preferred string quartets. But, Brides on a budget can do really well by allowing their DJ to play the pre-seating, processional and recessional music. We can also provide a microphone for the minister, rabbi, or officiant or an extra microphone for readers/performers if the venue doesn’t already do so.
Our DJs build the playlist based on the Bride and Groom’s requests. The DJs cue and play the correct songs at the right time for the processional and recessional. But it’s also our job to help guide a client musically in the direction that best suits their style while maintaining at least some components of the integrity and reverence of a Wedding Ceremony.
SO…You like classical music but you don’t know the difference between Bach and Beethoven, and you thought Yo Yo Ma was something you did with that child’s toy on a string. Well, Bach is one of my all time favorite composers and his “Jesu’ Joy Of Man’s Desiring” or “Air on a G Sting” are famously used in Wedding Ceremonies all the time…Beethoven’s music might be too intense for most Weddings, however, I think I’ve heard “Ode to Joy” at a few Ceremonies, though it likely belongs at the Olympics instead. And of course, Yo Yo Ma is widely considered the finest cellist to ever live, he’s certainly the most popular and best selling recording artist in his field, heck he even played at Obama’s Inauguration, even though that was a pre-recorded studio performance, no they aren’t really playing that well on the steps of the capital in January!
Do you need to know any of this? No! Not unless classical music really interests you. But, let your DJ help you make some interesting choices without playing the same 12 songs on “The Classical Wedding Sampler CD” he bought 10 years ago. Does every DJ know classical music? NO! Which is why if you hire one to play your ceremony and you want classical music, you should ask him if he or someone in his company REALLY knows classical music…I happen to be that person in our company and our DJs call on me for questions, and I invite you to as well!
So now, I can finally get to my point. You like the classical feel, you don’t know classical music, you love popular music too, but you don’t know how to incorporate the two in your Wedding Ceremony without the two styles clashing. Four Words: The Vitamin String Quartet.
When I first heard a recording of this group, I couldn’t believe it. One of my former Bride’s and now a colleague, wedding photographer Heidi Ryder and her husband Chris introduced the group to me. Chris and Heidi wanted me to play The Vitamin String Quartet recordings for the 30 minutes of pre-seating Ceremony music, while all of the guests were arriving and taking their seats. To give you an example of what the “VSQ” plays, you just need to go to their website or the youtube links I embedded below and hear the samples of their recordings…but, to put it in words this is from their website:
“Comprised of a rotating collective top-flight Los Angeles musicians, The Vitamin String Quartet puts a classical spin on many popular genres of pop, punk, and metal and is widely known for its tributes to cutting-edge rock acts. VSQ’s innovative approach and dedication to seeking out great material, highlights just how distinctive the string quartet is.”
These guys play extremely well, and their sound is spot-on for that classical feel you’re looking for. They pay tribute to the likes of The Beatles, Tool, Coldplay, Metallica, The Killers, Alice in Chains, Dave Matthews, Queen, Radiohead and on and on… Skeptical? I was too…but I listened and I am a believer! I use this group in about 25% of my wedding ceremonies now. The best part? Your guests will come to the DJ and ask, “Who Was That Instrumental Group with all the pop and rock songs?” and I love watching people’s ears perk up as they are obviously thinking, “this sounds like Bach, but I could swear I’m hearing “Back in Black?” And they’re right! It sounds elegant, it fits with the surroundings of a beautiful wedding ceremony, it isn’t at all cheesy, and it’s something completely different! Finally, a fresh approach to classical music at the modern Wedding Ceremony.
Keep it elegant, but make it fun. Listen to and purchase The Vitamin String Quartet on their website, I-tunes or anywhere else that carries them. If you’ve got the budget, they are available for booking live performances as well. Whether live or recorded, I suspect this group could even convert some of the die hard classical aficionados to their fan club, they really are that good!
Woo! We still have friends asking us what that music was that was played before our ceremony- it was so perfect! Glad we helped you discover it. 🙂
In our experience, most songs are attainable through some type of internet purchase, honestly I can’t remember the last time I bought a CD at a store. When a client or couple asks for a song we’ve never heard of (since there are millions of songs, this happens a lot) we will make sure we have the song for them one way or the other. If the song is really hard to find/get, I ask a simple question of the client, “Do you or someone you know own this song in your personal music collection?” If the answer is yes, I ask if they will provide us with a copy of the song, either email an mp3 version to us or make a CD to give to us. This is never a problem.
We want every client to be totally satisfied with the overall job that we do to entertain, MC, and play music for their event, and we certainly don’t want 1 song to be the breaking point for a client’s satisfaction. Whatever it takes, we give 100% effort and passion to achieve full success at every event. Thanks for your comments!
I was hoping to find out how to contact the Vitamin String Quartet? I have a client who wants all Phish songs performed classically for her wedding ceremony, and has the budget to fly the quartet to Asheville, NC from LA and put them up in hotel rooms. Do you have a contact number? Attempts at contacting them through their web-page have gone un-responded. Thanks!! ~Ellie
I will work on finding the contact info for them…you know, I am originally from Asheville, NC…how bizarre is that?! I’ll try to have an answer for you ASAP. Cheers, Jason J.