wedding 2025 | Choosing Your Music & Entertainment

The Music

date posted: February 24, 2025

There’s nothing like a shared sense of wonder to bring folks together.

Music by Bill’s Toupee Band. Photo by Rachel Collet Photography.

Champagne Aerial Bartender Jessica Black OnStage.

Live Watercolor Painting by Mollie Fox Studio.

set the stage for memory making

There’s nothing that compares to starting your married life off by sharing fun and laughter with your tribe. Good music for dancing is a great start, but it’s not hard to add a few extras into the recipe that will get people mingling and making memories together.

a touch of magic

Consider hiring a mentalist or strolling magician to amaze and delight your guests and supercharge table conversations. Fire eaters, fire jugglers, and acrobats are showstoppers too. There’s nothing like a shared sense of wonder to bring folks together.

art of happiness

Hire a plein air (outdoor) painter to capture the scene as it unfolds— your guests will love watching the picture emerge, and you’ll have a uniquely wonderful souvenir of the day. Or hire a caricaturist to sketch your guests. Set up an arts and/or crafts station where guests of all ages can get creative, and hang a large piece of posterboard next to it for a group creation.

Photo by Kalz Photography.

Photo by Rachel Collet Photography.

party faces

Face painting isn’t just for kids anymore, although they’ll love it too. Hire a face painter and/or set up a glitter-and-feather station. (Make sure the latter is OK with your venue.) Have the art table set up so that guests can make simple masks and/or hats.

game time

If you have outdoor space, set up some lawn games. Indoors, or on a patio, have some board games handy so non-dancers can challenge one another to a contest of luck or strategy. Giant Jenga and Connect4 sets are a blast. A wedding scavenger hunt can be a great way to keep the kids entertained. There’s nothing like friendly, funny competition to turn strangers into friends.

enhance the dance

Grab a few salsa lessons together and choreograph that first dance, or brainstorm a flash mob idea with your besties for mid-reception. Only you know your crowd; there are people who go absolutely bonkers with joy over old chestnuts like the Electric Slide, the Limbo, or the Conga, and others whose spirits soar with a newer line dance or two thrown into the mix.

Do yourselves a favor, though, and make sure your band, DJ, or chosen playlist steers clear of songs about love gone bad, cheating hearts, and the like. This can mean double-checking the lyrics and ditching some absolute ravers, but there are enough great love songs, party rockers, and odes to joy out there to help you avoid those dissonant notes..

THE CATSKILL QUARTET / WOODSTOCK TRIO

Hudson Valley, catskillquartet.com, catskillquartet@gmail.com

On your special day, you want every sound, sensation, and sight to be stunning. What could be more perfect than the sound of a live string quartet? Wini and the members of the Catskill Quartet/Woodstock Trio have decades of experience and are perfect for any occasion! From Bach to Vitamin String Quartet pop arrangements…check out our website’s vast music listing!

BUD MALTIN METROPOLITAN MUSIC

Call 212-447-6543, Text 201-406-0236 budmaltin.com

Bud Maltin Metropolitan Music provides live bands, DJs, and even a DJ/live band hybrid for your wedding! Prices range from $4,800 to $10,000, with an average cost of $6,900. Mention this ad for significant discounts on select dates! Text 201-406-0236 for details. Enjoy 100% continuous music and peace of mind–they’ve been awarded “The Knot.com Best of Weddings” 12 years in a row and are WeddingWire Hall of Fame recipients. Plus, they’re recommended by several Hudson Valley venues!