Including your guests in your wedding in some way sounds in principle like a great idea, but when it comes to asking your guests to put on some kind of performance during the wedding day is it better to leave it to the hired pros? Sounds like a Friday Fight-Out to me!
In the Red Corner, fighting the case for guest performances, she herself sang at her own wedding along with encouraging friends to grab their guitars and casually sing and play at the reception to their heart’s content, it’s Dom “The Tog Bride”.
In the Blue Corner, arguing to bring in the professionals, probably out of fear of someone asking him to remember how to play Trombone at their wedding… it’s Matt “The Gormless Groom”
Time to fight this one out:
Guest Performances Vs Pros Only
FIGHT!!!
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Dom: Having guests performing at the wedding makes it so personal and special to you and makes it so much more memorable than someone you don’t know playing along.
Matt: As with asking friends to take care of any part of the wedding as a favour there’s always a chance they might not be as reliable as a hired professional. They may not find the time to rehearse beforehand and in their enthusiasm and willingness to please you may over-promise on what they’re able to actually deliver.
Dom: Involving the guests and encouraging others to join in too can create a great party atmosphere as people just get up and play and feel more involved when it is friends of theirs performing.
Matt: Your guests want to be part of your day and get to relax with their friends and have some drinks. Asking them to be responsible for entertaining everyone can prevent them from fully enjoying the day and you may find they lose interest in their entertaining duties as the night wears on.
Dom: Your friends know your tastes in music and know which songs have a special significance to you and it’s lovely to have them perform something to you that you may not even have thought about.
Matt: Unless your friends actually play together in a band then they may have a very limited repertoire of songs they all know and may not be able to adjust to the tone of the evening as easily as a professional wedding band.
Dom: Even if you hire a professional for the reception, having a friend perform a song that is really special to you during the ceremony can both make it even more special and also make them feel really involved in the ceremony if they have no other official role. That song is one you will always remember.
Matt: Wedding Bands and DJ’s generally bring along their own equipment and have everything they need in terms of lighting and sound gear to create the right atmosphere, whereas your friends may be relying on borrowing gear which may or may not turn up or be the right gear for the job. Hiring a professional covers your bases more safely.
Dom: Part of the fun of having a band made out of friends is actually that they might not get everything quite right but make it up as they go along and get the other guests to help them along the way… forgetting the lyrics to a particular song can end up with the whole room singing along and the atmosphere is just electric!
Matt: Professional wedding bands are usually really good at making sure they include songs for every generation so that everyone gets up on the dance floor. Friends are more likely to only be able to play songs they particularly enjoy which may appeal to you but may not encourage the older generations to bust a groove!
So those are our thoughts but where do you stand? Would you ask friends to entertain the guests or do you think it’s best to hire a professional? Place your vote below or leave a comment to join the debate!
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