Wedding Wire "Bride's Choice" Award

Good Note DJs is proud to again be the recipient of a WeddingWire Bride's Choice Award™ , bestowed upon the top five percent of wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Network who demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness and professionalism.

New Venues (for Me) from the Past Year

With many years of DJ'ing under my belt, most of the weddings I perform at are at venues I've worked at before. But each year, I work at a few new ones -- new to me, that is.  Here are the venues I worked at for the first time in the past year, 2012:

• 1840s Ballroom, Baltimore MD 
• Eastern Market (North Hall) , Washington DC
• Trummers on Main, Clifton VA
• Lorien Hotel, Alexandria VA
• Rock Creek Mansion, Bethesda MD
• The Belvedere, Baltimore MD

If you're considering holding your event at any of the over 200 venues I've performed at, I'd be happy to share my insights about them.  Just send me an email and I'll be happy to respond (please include your phone #). 

Most Requested: the DJ Intelligence "Top 200" Songs

DJ Intelligence generates a list of the 200 songs most requested by mobile DJ clients over the past 12 months. The 2012 winners are now posted at Mobile Beat’s website.

Of course, just because a song is popular doesn't mean YOU have hear it at YOUR wedding. In fact, some of my clients go through a list like this to ferret out songs for their "Do Not Play" list! Still, for most events, the DJ Intelligence Top 200 are sure-fire dance floor fillers. And ultimately, at the end of your reception, you'll be happiest if your guests were having a great time dancing.

For more information on DJ Intelligence, see www.DJIntelligence.com.

Good Note DJs - WeddingWire Bride's Choice Award for the 4th year in a row

My "expert picks" for Washingtonian blog posting on wedding songs

Check out Good Note DJ's current article in Washingtonian Magazine's wedding blog. They asked me to pick out one or two of my favorites for each category of wedding music. (When working with clients of course I have long lists for each category for the wedding couple to choose from) .

Why I Still Use CDs

An article in the May 10 NY Times, "In Mobile Age, Sound Quality Takes a Step Back," reminds me of the reason why I still primarily play music from CDs rather than from mp3s.

The article notes that the music stored on computers and iPods is compressed. The amount of data in the original recording is reduced so as to speed up download times and to allow more songs to be stored on the device. Compression "shrinks the size of the files, eliminating some of the sounds and range contained on a CD."

(For example, a typical 4 minute song on a CD requires 40 MB of data. However, an mp3 file of that same song can be less than 4 MB -- containing less than one-tenth of the audio data on the CD. Even a higher quality mp3 of that same song is only about 6 or 7 MB -- still only about one-sixth of the audio data on the CD.)

As the NY Times reports, "compressed music files produce a crackly, tinnier, and thinner sound than music on CDs."

The reason most listeners don't notice the difference is that today's generation most often listens to music through a pair of iPod earbuds or through their computer speakers. These are adequate for that purpose. It's a trade-off between quality on the one hand and portability and convenience on the other.

But play that same compressed mp3 file through a $5,000 professional sound system like I use and, believe me, you CAN hear the difference between that and the original CD!

Not Too Heavy, Not Too Light

Do you recall that recent Bud Light TV commercial titled “The Arrival”?

A guy arrives at a backyard party, waves to no one in particular, and meekly says “hi everybody.” Nobody even notices. “TOO LIGHT,” proclaims the ad. Then the same guy is shown crashing through the back fence in a fire-spewing monster truck. “TOO HEAVY,” for sure. In contrast, we’re told, the beer that’s right for you is “not too heavy, not too light.”

The same standard – neither too heavy nor too light – applies to the DJ who serves as Master of Ceremonies (MC)at a wedding reception.

You don’t want your DJ/MC to come across like a melodramatic ringmaster at a Barnum & Bailey Circus, a cheesy TV game show host, wild and crazy “Morning Zoo” radio jock, or a World Wrestling Foundation announcer. TOO HEAVY.

But neither do you want an DJ/MC who’s a wallflower, inarticulate, soft-spoken, unable to command attention, more comfortable buried in his headphones and staring at his mixer than addressing an audience on the microphone. TOO LIGHT.

What you want and need for a wedding reception is a DJ/MC who knows how to talk on the microphone but also knows when not to; who sounds like a classy, articulate professional; who comes across with just enough (but not too much) positive energy; and who can get your guests’ attention when needed to make announcements but without grabbing the spotlight for himself.

Why Hire a Videographer

If your wedding budget permits, I recommend you hire a professional videographer in addition to a photographer.

Photos are wonderful, but only a video can capture the sounds as well as sights of your wedding day. Your wedding vows as you speak them. The toasts by your friends and family. The grand entrance introductions. The music played as you dance your first dance. 

Don’t just think of how you'll feel when you watch your wedding video in a year or two. Think of how you'll feel when you watch it 25 years from now. And how your children will feel, and even your grandchildren.  Looking at photographs stirs memories, but watching film footage makes the figures in those photos come alive. It's a whole different level of experience.

Sure, you have an uncle with a $300 Canon camcorder who’ll loves to shoot family gatherings. But will he guarantee he’ll get all the special moments? Will he capture good quality sound? Will he be on the job constantly, ready to capture those little details and spontaneous moments that tell the story? Will he edit the raw footage into a truly watchable, emotionally compelling, film? No; probably not; uh-huh; and not-so-much.

Ceremony Music Confusion

There's a saying:  Assumption is the mother of all screw-ups. (That's the polite version!)

Nowhere is this more true in at a wedding than when people make assumptions about when the ceremonial music should start.  The troubles lie in the space between the PRELUDE music and the BRIDAL PARTY PROCESSIONAL.

During that time, various things can happen. Depending on the bride and groom's religious or ethnic custom:

• the officiant might enter (if he's not already at the altar);
• the grandmothers and mothers might be seated (which might involve groomsmen doubling as ushers);
• the groom might enter (if he's not already at the altar);
• the groomsmen might enter before the bridesmaids (rather than being paired with bridesmaids for the processional).

Here's where assumptions are all over the map: WHAT music, if any, is playing during those moments?


Some people assume the prelude music should continue during those moments.

Some people assume there is silence. The prelude music ends, and there's no music until the bridesmaids start walking down the aisle.

Some people assume there is a separate song to be played for one or more of these moments (e.g,. a song for seating of the mothers).

Some people assume that whatever song has been selected for the bridal party processional should start playing during these moments (even though the bridesmaids themselves haven't yet come in).

And the funny thing is, everyone who makes one of these assumptions also assumes that "their" way IS "the way." 

With years of experience as a wedding DJ, and providing music for people of various religions and ethnic backgrounds, I have concluded that the ONLY way to handle this correctly is:  COMMUNICATION, not assumptions.  I talk with the bride and groom in advance, and discuss with them exactly who will be walking down the aisle, and in what order, and what music (if any) should be played in the moments between the end of the prelude music and the processional of the bridesmaids!

Whether you're using a DJ or live musicians for your ceremonial music, I strongly suggest you do the same.

The Importance of Listening

After a recent meeting with a wedding couple, I sent them a draft schedule outlining the things we had decided: the time-line for the reception, the songs selected, the items still pending, and so on.

In reply, I received this email from the bride: "Wow -- you are good! You got the details that I turned to [my fiancé] and mentioned without realizing you were paying such close attention!"

This bride's kind note reveals one of the secrets of a successful wedding DJ. That is: LISTENING to the wedding couple! Not just listening, but listening carefully, heeding not only their overt directions to me but also picking up the little nuances they convey through their banter with each other.

I'll take that one step further. When I meet with my clients, I'm not only listening to what each one is saying, I'm also LOOKING at how the other is reacting.

That way, I can see where they're in agreement -- and where I might need to prod them into further discussion before we finalize things. If the bride is saying "Oh yes, my family loves those line dances" and I see the groom smiling or nodding his head, I know he's OK with that. But if he's raising his eyebrows or rolling his eyes, I know he has a different opinion about the "Electric Slide." In that case,I can facilitate a brief discussion and help them reach a mutual agreement or compromise on the point.

Playing music and making announcements on the day of the wedding is a big part of a wedding DJ's job. But it's the listening and learning beforehand that ensures a wedding tailored to each couple's desires.