Planning a
St. Louis wedding? We realize that this is probably the first time you're securing music
entertainment for a wedding reception. So let's review what you can expect from
"A Sound Investment".
SETTING
UP
"A Sound Investment" will arrive 1 hour before the scheduled start time. This
gives us time to coordinate the sound before your guests arrive. If your guests will be
arriving before our scheduled start time, notify us and we'll prepare earlier.
WHILE YOUR GUESTS
ARE ARRIVING
you can expect to hear romantic background music that will set the atmosphere, played at a
volume level that will allow guests to converse.
WHEN
THE BRIDE AND GROOM ARRIVE
we'll bring it to your guests' attention, if you like. We'll make sure the wedding party
is in the proper order and announce, "Ladies and gentlemen, if you would please
direct your attention toward the entrance, I'd like to introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Bob
and Julie Smith". During the introduction we usually play "Nothing's Gonna''
Stop Us Now" by The Starship. By this time the wedding party will be receiving a
standing ovation and the stage will be set for an evening of fun!
WHEN IT'S TIME FOR
THE TOAST
we'll make sure all the members of the wedding party are seated and ask for your guests'
attention as we make the following announcement, "Ladies and gentlemen, once again
how about a nice round of applause for Julie and Bob. On behalf of Julie and Bob, we would
like to thank you for coming to share this special evening with them. At this time I would
like to introduce you to the best man who has a few words to say-Mr. Phil Spencer."
If you like, we can introduce the entire wedding party and the parents too! After the
toast we'll announce dinner as well.
DURING
DINNER
you can expect to hear appropriate dining music, for example: light jazz, classical or we
can continue with romantic songs. You make the choice! This is also presented at a
comfortable volume level.
PRIOR TO THE FIRST
DANCE
we'll remind the best man to notify the wedding party of the upcoming events, so they are
ready to participate when introduced. We'll also make sure the photographer is standing by
and ready to go.
THE
"FIRST DANCE" will be to a song of your choice. We will again ask for a round of applause and
announce the newlyweds will be having their first dance as husband and wife. Half way
through the song we'll invite the wedding party to join in, or if the bride and groom
prefer, they can choose a separate song especially for them.
THE
"FATHER/DAUGHTER DANCE" will immediately follow the "first dance". Again we will furnish your
choice of song. At this time we can also invite the groom and his mother to join them. We
also remind the groom to remain near his mother and make the appropriate introduction.
THE
DANCE PERIOD is the most important phase of presenting music at a wedding reception. We usually
have three generations to please and they all want something that is going to appeal to
them, now! Therefore, the music must be presented in a format that will provide something
for everyone soon. The first few songs are crucial. The crowd's first impression of dance
music can make the difference between your guests staying or leaving and will effect the
rest of the evening.
Let us give an example of successful music programming. We've found the most successful
strategy is to start with something for the older generation like "In the Mood"
By Glen Miller (Your older guests usually feel the DJ is going to "blow" them
away with hard "Rock & Roll" or "Rap" and they will have to leave
early. By playing something for them first, we give them confidence they will be
represented throughout the course of the night). If we follow that song with
"Unchained Melody" by the Righteous Brothers (theme from "Ghost") most
of them will stay to slow dance. It
will also attract a whole new group of people to the floor. Now we have all generations
dancing. At the end of this song most of the older dancers will return to their seats
(most won't dance more than two songs in a row). Now it's time to get our new dancers
moving. If we play something that will appeal to everyone, like "Respect" by
Aretha Franklin, we can increase our chances of most of them staying on the dance floor.
Now it's time to really get the crowd moving with something a bit more contemporary like
"Wild Thing" by Tone Loc. If they are very responsive we may want to continue
with one more up tempo song, something Rock oriented like "You Shook Me All Night
Long" by AC/DC. Now let's think back. It's been three songs since we have played a
slow song, at least two songs since we have appealed to our older generation and we have
probably worn out our current dancers. The time is right for a slow song that will entice
our older generation back to the floor. Then we'll start all over again.
As you can see in the first few songs we have appealed to most musical tastes and
all generations. You can also see that timing is very important. Our trick to an exciting
performance is to keep track of who is on the dance floor, how long they've been there,
when they're likely to leave, then incorporate the style of music that has been neglected
for the past couple of songs. If this is done consistently throughout the dance period
1) the floor will remain active all the time,
2) with a good turnover of different age groups, and
3) everyone is happy.
The disc jockey's ability to read the crowd will make all the difference in the
world. If the proper songs are not played in the proper order, it could result in a lack
of participation. This is hardly the time to rely on discount disc jockeys. We
understand that most clients would like the option of choosing music. We will provide a
music list for that purpose. More about that in a moment.
THE GARTER AND
BOUQUET TOSS is next on the agenda. We'll invite all single ladies to the dance floor for an
opportunity to catch the bride's bouquet, as well as the men for the garter. We can also
add a little humor by playing "The Stripper" while the groom is removing the
garter. And when the woman that catches the bouquet gets the garter placed on her leg by
the lucky guy that caught it, everyone responds to the song "Oh Yeah." Speaking
of fun, we can also enhance the performance by interacting with the crowd during "The
Electric Slide" and "The Duck Dance". Let's not forget about "New
York, New York." We'll have them in a chorus line like they're on Broadway (near
Soulard!).
THE
PHOTOGRAPHER "A Sound Investment" will always work closely with the photographer and
videographer to make sure all events are documented properly.
OUR
"RECEPTION EVENT PLANNER" is provided to help you plan the events of your reception. It will also inform us of
your preferences. Please fill out the form entirely and return 10 days before the
reception. This will give us time to coordinate the presentation. NOTE: You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to
print this document. To download Acrobat Reader click here.
OUR "MUSIC LIST" will be provided to assist you in selecting or eliminating music. It contains
hundreds of our most requested songs. Our library contains over 15,000 selections on
compact disc. If you do not see a certain song on our list, chances are very good we have
it.
CHOOSING MUSIC We can program the music in advance all we want, but every crowd is different. Some
people respond to certain types of music more than others. Therefore, it is important to
rely on the disc jockey's ability to read the crowd and react according to what your
guests are responding to. If you would like to select music, we suggest you choose music
you would like to hear, but highlight or circle the selections that are of great
importance to you. We'll try our best to play all of these songs (time permitting) and
incorporate the rest in the format we spoke of earlier. We want to please you and
concentrate on the crowds best interest using your music selections as a guideline, and
our expertise.
THINGS
TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING MUSIC 1) People seldom dance to songs they do not recognize.
2) Choosing songs that appeal to more than one generation increases the percentage
of participants.
3) Try not to let personal preferences conflict with the crowds best interest.
If you prefer, we will be happy to program the music for you. We ask that you
submit the "music list" at least 21 days in advance. This gives us an
opportunity to serve you better.
REQUESTS Every group has them, and we're always happy to play them as long as they are within
the crowd's best interest.
REFERENCES A Sound Investment encourages you to ask for references from all your wedding
suppliers, but especially disc jockeys. This will give you a better indication of the
quality of service they provide consistently. But don't stop there, ask for the names and
phone numbers of the companies last 4 clients. A Sound Investment is happy to provide you
with this information on a voluntary basis. Click here for a list of our satisfied brides
KARAOKE A Sound Investment St. Louis also offers Karaoke! You can add the fun of Karaoke to
your wedding reception for only $75!
Check out the details.
OUR "PERFORMANCE AGREEMENT" For your convenience we have included a link to our "Performance
Agreement". If you would like to secure your date without delay, simply fill out the
agreement and return it with your deposit.
St. Louis Weddings 
