This was a lot of fun. Hannah & Michael are friends of mine. I LOVE working for people I know because it makes the performance personally meaningful. I give 100% effort at all my parties but when it's friends or family you really step it up a notch. Hannah is a teacher who just graduated from college with her degree and spent time student teaching in both of my children's' classrooms. Additionally she is my daughters Pioneer Clubs teacher and has been an incredibly positive influence on my little girl.
The Springside Inn is a nice, family run establishment that serves some really great food. The Inn is old (it opened originally in 1854) and while it is well maintained it is an old building filled with all of the nuances that give old buildings their charm. The grounds are beautiful for pictures and the staff was very pleasant and accommodating, despite some problems with the seating chart, everything was handled well and professionally.
Hannah and Michael are just like most of the Brides and Grooms I've worked with over the last 15 years. They had a very definite idea of what they wanted to hear musically for their wedding. They chose a lot of really great music and we would have had an awesome party had we stuck strictly with what they had chosen. However as the big day arrived and their friends and family began talking to them about their desire to dance to specific songs and to really have a great time they began to wonder if their music selections focused too narrowly on their own tastes. This prompted Hannah to ask me to "play just good music that everyone will enjoy." Taking this new "flexibility" to hand I am happy to say that the dance floor was filled the entire time, and keep in mind this was an AFTERNOON wedding reception, which usually present the biggest challenge to dancing. I managed to play about 90% of Hannah & Michaels requests only having to add a few classics like "Build Me Up Buttercup", and "The Twist" to move things along.
(* Special note - I tell all my client this and I truly believe it with my heart but its good people that make a good party. The DJ can guide it and he can even take it to the level of GREAT but it starts with the people. If they want to have fun, and you give them the basics they will, even in spite of a crappy DJ)
And there you have it. That is the art of what a really good DJ is capable of. Discerning what music will motivate a crowd and how to string those songs together to keep people involved is indeed an art form. Like any art it takes years of trial and error, and herds and herds of practical experience to learn. Thats what a DJ does if he wants to make people happy.
Making requests is fine. You need only read the previous post to know that I am willing to play strictly the music that clients choose during their affair. Any professional DJ should be willing to do the same. However I encourage people to allow the DJ the flexibility to work "his magic" on the crowd. You can essentially play 40-50 songs duringa 4 hour party. Pick 20 that you absolutely MUST hear, and leave the DJ with the room to string those requests, together with "appropriate" requests from your guests and the songs that he KNOWS will move people to enjoy themselves. That is the recipe for a GREAT event. One which will be memorable to you and your guests.
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