Anyone who has spent any time in Manchester will know that it has a fabulous music scene. From funk and soul club nights to acoustic singer-songwriters in cafes, it is one of those cities that seems to have music in its bones.
However, when it comes to looking for a musician to play at your wedding day, where should you start? Sometimes the sheer variety of what’s available can seem intimidating.
In this blog, we’ll give some top tips for finding wedding musicians in Manchester – just remember not to leave it too late before booking!
Consider your requirements
Before you start sending emails and booking acts, there are several practical things to consider. Before you take one step down that road, consider the following questions:
– What is our budget?
– How much space do we have?
– When do we want live music during the day?
Without realistic answers to those questions, booking your wedding band in Manchester (or anywhere else!) will be much more difficult. While there are more details that you will need to work out along the way, these questions are an excellent place to start.
While you might love the idea of an eleven-piece soul band playing on your wedding day from 9 am till 11 pm, if your wedding is taking place in an intimate venue and your budget doesn’t match up to reality, it’s going to be a waste of your time looking – you’d be much better off using this time to look for solo singers with backing tracks and acoustic musicians.
It is also essential to consider any other practical requirements of your wedding venue – do they have any noise restrictions? Does live music have to be concluded by a specific time? All of this information will be best to know in advance.
Do some research online
Once you have ironed out some details about what you are looking for in your act, you can begin preliminary research to see what’s available.
Entertainment directories like Last Minute Musicians offer wedding musicians in Manchester and can be a great place to start, as they offer a huge variety of acts for you to browse. You can get a feel for prices, repertoire, availability and view some prospective act’s promotional material, like videos and audio clips.
You can then start to inquire about specific acts, sort arrangements to see them live, and even make bookings.
Get out and about
If you are still lacking inspiration, then it’s time to lace up the shoes and hit some of the music events in Manchester. Try getting recommendations from friends, open mic nights, and finding events that have more than one band on the bill, whether they are playing in established venues or pubs and clubs.
The Northern Quarter is a brilliant part of the city for live music, and a trip around there can often help you get a better idea of the sort of act that you’d like to book – potentially one you’d never have considered before.
