Live Music on a Budget

The most classy touch on any wedding ceremony is live music, specifically having a quartet of musicians such as a brass or string quartet. It immediately sets the mood.

A friend of mine was recently married in the Lincoln Train Station. She seemed to have kept the costs down on everything. So I was surprised to see the string quartet at her ceremony. The one thing that I did notice about this string quartet is that all of the members were fairly young. This was her secret.

There are lots of talented, well-practiced musicians right in your hometown. They practice every day because they do it at school. That's right, I'm talking about high school students. My friend was able to book the students for $200 for the whole group (dirt cheap pretty much). And to a high school student, the extra $50 is worth it for them.

Now you can't just pick any students, obviously. The best place place to start is the Lincoln Youth Symphony. This is a group of the most talented young people in Lincoln, so you should get your money's worth with them. These kids are serious about music and usually jump at the opportunity to get more experience.

You can also go through local high schools. Attend an Orchestral concert and save a program to find out which students are soloists and first chair. Ask the director for those students by name.

Before calling the professor, set your price and exact expectations. Have your music picked out. If you're using a special song (like Jon Schmidt's song mentioned in a previous blog post), have the music ready so the group knows what is expected. Once the group agrees, ask them to audition for you and put together an agreement with them with the songs, dates and times specified.

Also consider Select Groups at high schools and colleges. Choral and Instrumental groups sometimes offer performance services. One group to consider is Lincoln Christian's select singing group "Image." These groups often need to raise money for trips and such. They will often allow you to choose a donation amount.

My last piece of advice is to take the time to hear the groups and make sure you are satisfied what you will be paying for.