Liz & Sam's wedding music package with Down for the Count
The professional photos in this article were kindly provided by Courtenay Photographic. Check out the other photos of Liz and Sam's Dorset wedding here.
In September 2017 we were booked to provide music for Liz and Sam’s wedding in Dorset. The wedding took place on Liz’s family farm, and Liz and Sam wanted live music for each part of their day.
The drive to the gig itself was beautiful, and en route we stumbled across Marshfield Farm, just north of Bath - and as luck would have it we were ahead of schedule, so just had to stop for a wonderful ice-cream...
We arrived early to set up the evening band in the marquee, and then had to find a way to get a PA system to the location of Liz & Sam's wedding ceremony – which was to take place on top of the hill opposite the farm, a beautiful spot with unspoiled views over the Dorset countryside.
The only way to get there (apart from carrying the PA system up the hill, which we didn’t really fancy) was to use a buggy, lent to us by Liz’s family. I’m not going to lie, I had a LOT of fun driving it up the hill….
Liz and Sam had a memorable entrance to the ceremony – they were transported up the hill in a pair of vintage tractors and trailers, which had been beautifully decorated by their florist.
After the short and personal ceremony, Liz and Sam wanted an acoustic jazz trio to lead their guests from the hill, down to the farm for the reception.
As they walked down the aisle, our hidden walkabout musicians jumped out in front of them to serenade them to the drinks reception with Dixieland classics such as Oh When The Saints Go Marching In and Bourbon St Parade.
A walkabout, acoustic act is a great way of getting guests from one part of your wedding to another. Moving people from area to area can consume quite a large amount of time at wedding receptions, and having your entertainers help out makes it much more fun!
Find out more about the roaming acts we have available here.
The drinks reception took place in the farm garden, where we entertained the guests with two sets of instrumental music from our jazz band for hire, The Jazz Essentials.
Down for the Count have a great range of jazz bands for hire for your wedding reception. We have instrumental and vocal-led options, which can all provide unobtrusive background music indoors or outdoors, weather permitting.
After dinner and speeches in the marquee, it was time for the party to start. After the first dance, our 10-piece party band The Get Downs took to the stage with two sets of live music fronted by our two fantastic vocalists.
There was a great atmosphere, with guests of all ages on the dancefloor. We performed all of our dancefloor favourites, including our 20-minute medley of disco classics, which starts with Young Hearts Run Free and finishes with Lady Marmalade - with lots of other great hits in between!
To keep guests on the dancefloor, book a band who perform songs in medleys – getting rid of the gaps between songs really keeps the energy up and gives you a party to remember.
A few months after the wedding, we caught up with Liz who had this to say about our performance:
“Mike and the band were absolutely fantastic. During the set up on the day they were punctual and professional, and they were totally accommodating to our wacky requests (processional music down a field).
The music was exceptional - they're experts at reading the 'mood' of the room and got everyone up on their feet dancing.
So many of the guests came up to us afterwards to tell us how good they were. I couldn't recommend the band more highly!”
Get in touch today to find out how we can transform your marquee wedding with our sensational live music packages.
About the author
Mike Paul-Smith has over 18 years experience in delivering bespoke live music and entertainment packages for wedding receptions and corporate events across London, the UK and internationally.
He is the company director, pianist and musical director of Down for the Count.
