Couples take control of the melody mix behind the matrimony
For some, when it comes to their big day, musical DIY trumps hiring a wedding DJ
Sue Passmore made at least one crucial decision about her wedding without a second thought: she and her fiancé would shoulder the load of a DIY DJ duo.
After all, Passmore is one-third of the Juno Award-winning roots trio the Good Lovelies. Her wedding, set in the wooded splendour of Ontario’s picturesque cottage country, took place over the weekend, just days after her band released their new album, Burn the Plan.
Harried though she was, Passmore and partner Matt Barnett found hours to pour into creating three different playlists for the big day.
Hiring a DJ to curate the music might have saved time, but not peace of mind. “We didn’t want the classic wedding lists,” says Passmore.
“A lot of the dance music you’d hear at most weddings, it’s not so much our style. We wanted it to be the right vibe and suit what we wanted and we weren’t sure we were going to find that in a wedding DJ.
“We didn’t want to leave it up to random decisions based on somebody else’s tastes or what’s typical.”
They’re hardly alone. Whether to save money or to expose family and friends to the full benefits of their musical taste, many couples are similarly assuming control of the melody behind their matrimony.
Wedding DJs across the country report ever-stiffening competition in the form of iPods, laptops and even streaming services.
But professional wedding party-starters would also warn that their services cannot be so tidily replaced by a bulky hard drive and an auxiliary cord. “One thing I always love is when people start to DIY it and then they get overwhelmed and phone me,” said Scott Rideout, owner of Halifax-based True North DJ Services. “Couples underestimate the amount of energy it takes, from equipment to planning the playlist to implementing it.”
Outside of the budget-conscious, the couples most likely to program their own playlist tend to have — as Rideout puts it — “specific tastes.”
That could double as a polite euphemism for elitism.
And while it’s understandable that those with a cultivated musical palate will care deeply how their wedding sounds, professionals warn that an esoteric playlist will clear a floor faster than a Roomba.
“Generally, I find those people try to cater to a smaller number of people and don’t look at the big picture,” Rideout said. “You’ve got a room of 100 people — you want 100 people to know the songs you’re playing.”
“We didn’t want the classic wedding lists. A lot of the dance music you’d hear at most weddings, it’s not so much our style.” SUE PASSMORE MEMBER OF ROOTS TRIO THE GOOD LOVELIES — AND A NEWLYWED
For those engaged esthetes who simply don’t want to leave taste to trust, many wedding DJs now offer couple-specific customization.
And for those of us who would flip at hearing “Macarena,” balk at the “Chicken Dance” or check out during “YMCA,” most DJs grant a Do Not Play list. “Some songs that are guaranteed crowd pleasers, people don’t want because they’re consid- ered cheesy,” said Tarcy Schindelka, owner of Edmonton’s Advanced DJ Services. “So if the Do Not Play list includes the ‘Macarena’ — which everybody knows how to do — we won’t play the ‘Macarena.’ ”
The other selling point of the wedding DJ is ability to call an audio audible in the event of, say, a greyer-than-anticipated turnout who doesn’t know Rihanna from “Rhiannon.”
“I’ve had a wedding with 70 guests where they brought their iPod and asked their friend to man it,” said Toronto wedding planner Rebecca Chan. “I ended up being there with their friend helping to choose the music. Was it ideal? Probably not. But was the couple fine with it? Absolutely.”