Three one hour films which are being transmitted in March 2013 on BBC2. ‘A Very British Wedding’ is an observational series looking to explore the subject of weddings among different religions and cultures. Our contribution to the series was our performance at a Jewish Wedding (episode 3), showing the first dance and Israeli music discussions with the happy couple Ben and Natalie.

As one of the leading Jewish wedding bands in the UK (see our Jewish Wedding page)  it really was an honour to be asked to take part in the TV series. The focus is going to be on our Israeli dance sets which is such a big part of a Jewish wedding.

A Very British Wedding

You can see Lucy (our Keyboard player) being filmed by the BBC camera crew talking with Alan Shalks the wedding planner before our band performance.

‘A Very British Wedding’ is an observational Series looking to explore the subject of weddings among different Religions and Cultures in the UK today, through their planning, whether this is organized through more formal Planners, family members or the couple themselves.

It has been commissioned by Religion And Ethics at the BBC. Within the Series, they aim to give an intelligent understanding and insight into the practices, customs and traditions which each Culture and Religion approach weddings and in turn allow an insight into contemporary multi-cultural British life. They follow, in detail, the planning of weddings and the events themselves.

A photo from the braodcast off 'A Very British Wedding' for BBC2

A photo from the broadcast of 'A Very British Wedding' for BBC2

‘A Very British Wedding’ should be a great TV series – hope they get my good side!!

Any couples planning their wedding for next year look no further than The Choice the UK’s No 1 Jewish wedding band, to Israeli Dancing to our our acclaimed party sets.

In the spirit of transparency I’d like to point out that you are reading this blog from our band’s website www.thebandchoice.com so clearly we have a vested interest in the subject matter. Hopefully you’ll find this blog interesting however as it does offer a perspective from a band’s point of view –  from people like us that actually work in the industry! 

It’s also important to us (and our industry) that the right sort of bands get booked for the right events because a bad experience with a “not so suitable” band can ruin future gigs for all of us.

Before the internet took such a stranglehold over our lives, to book a band you would have had to contact an entertainment agency. These agents became the voice of recommendation. You would tell the agent what style of band you were looking for and he/she would then recommend the most suitable band for your event.

Importantly the bands that were recommended would have a working relationship with the agency. To continue that relationship the band would have to create great feedback and generate more work (future gigs). So the circle would go on, the agency would book a band they would in turn get more work for the agency….. a level of quality guaranteed.

This third person recommendation has all but vanished from the scene unless you have been personally recommended a band from a friend or colleague. If you do have a recommendation then tip number 1 go with that recommendation!

As a band ourselves we get a lot of referrals and of course some of the time we are not always available. In this situation what we always try to do is to recommend colleagues that run similar bands to us and are of equal quality.  It’s that third person recommendation again that’s all important, we want to make sure that the gig gets covered properly with a great band that will do a great job!

There are lots of agency websites on the internet these days and indeed we are on a few of them but do beware. We know of occasions where bands turn up for the event and the collective musicians involved  haven’t even met each other before!  These bands are not necessarily bad but certainly not experienced at working and jelling together as a professional band should be, also these “put together” bands tend to have a very limited repertoire.

I think it’s really important to make sure that if it’s a “wedding band” you’re after for example make sure the band is performing at weddings regularly. How do you know this – well most established bands have a Facebook page. Whether you like Facebook or not it is very informative. It’s also  much more transparent as far as testimonials are concerned, it’s very easy to write a lovely testimonial page on a website but it’s not so easy to have lots of comments on a Facebook page.

You will also find that bands will always post gigs on their Facebook page so it’s easy to see just how much a band is working – the more work generally the better the band.

That’s it from my first blog on the subject, next time I’ll talk about band website content and reading between the lines.

Good luck with your hunt for a great band – if you’re in any doubt email me or just book  The Choice and be done with any worries!!

It truly is a great Hotel, situated on the banks of the River Thames in the lovely town of Marlow – what a great location! We have performed at The Compleat Angler on so many occasions over the last few years that it feels like going home!

Our reason for this recent visit was to perform at the wedding of Sarah and Stephen.

They had around 120 guests for the evening festivities which is a perfect number for the Hotel’s banqueting suite.
They wanted ‘The Last Dance’ by Claire Maquire for their first dance and they had even had dance lessons, which  is always a brave move – and incredibly nerve racking!
I can report that they pulled it off perfectly – well done guys…the crowd went mad!!

This was followed by their second requested song of the night ‘Start me up’ by The Rolling Stones. Again not a song that we usually do in the set but we were only too pleased to have learnt it for them and boy did it go down well!!
The rest of the night was followed with wall to wall dancing, a fantastic crowd that really came along to enjoy themselves.

As you’ll see if you’ve looked around our web site we play at some fantastic venues. The Compleat Angler Weddings is definately amongst the best – friendly staff, fantastic location and if you’re clever like Sarah and Stephen they have fantastic bands as well!!!

What does make The Choice one of this country’s leading Party Bands?

Well…..if you’ve had a chance to look around our website you will see all the different types of Functions and Events The Choice perform for – (see our Appearances page)

All these events have one thing in common, they all want to party, they all want to dance, they all want their guests to have a night they will never forget.

To ensure all this happens they book one of the best Party Bands on the circuit today – The Choice.

The Party Bands party band!

The experience of performing at so many different type of events does give us a unique insight into what makes a night a success.

Party Bands are a rare breed, well good ones are anyway because they need to be ready with a repertoire large enough to cover any eventuality. They need to be able to switch musical gears to bring an audience up and down according to the flow of the night. Reading an audience is essential to how successful a night can be, reacting to what songs are going down well with the crowds. However, when you do get that awkward Corporate crowd, that shy wedding audience that’s when you really find out what a great Party Band is really all about!!

A taste of the music we play:

From ‘Kings of Leon’ to ‘Adele’ to ‘Snow Patrol’ to ‘Beyonce’, rock, motown, soul, funk, and classic disco anthems. With the advantage of both male & female lead vocals, our extensive and varied setlist caters for all musical tastes – you can be absolutely sure that guests of all ages will enjoy our music and will be up dancing and singing all night long!

Make sure you book one of the best Party Bands in the UK for your next big Event – The Choice!

Pendley Manor

It’s been a few years since we’d last performed at Pendley Manor so we were really excited to be back at this great venue.

Pendley Manor has some great function rooms with loads of atmosphere with idyllic surroundings. Outside, the  immaculate lawns and landscaped gardens will show you just why this Hertfordshire wedding venue’s so sought after.
This grade II listed Hertfordshire hotel is set in 35 acres of beautifully landscaped and wooded parkland close to the picturesque Hertfordshire town of Tring. The hotel is little more than an hour from Central London, very close to the M1 and M25 motorways.

We were performing at the wedding of Amy and Chris, a lovely couple who had booked us after seeing us perform at the annual Ivinghoe Ball last year. We were performing with the  ‘classic’ four piece line-up option which was an ideal size for the room.

As well as us they had also booked a  DJ – Phil from Mayhem Productions – a really nice guy and terrific DJ. It’s always a pleasure to work with a DJ that wants to work with the band rather than against which some do unfortunately.

With around 200 guests the night really took on a great party atmosphere. It was really great to see the happy couple dancing all night long from their first dance to the last!

Wedding \\industry Awards 2012 and 2013

If you’re looking for a great wedding venue around the Tring area than take a look around Pendley Manor. It’s got real charm and  great staff and is very unlike a lot of those “corporate” type hotels.

If you’re also looking for a great wedding band don’t forget to give us a call on 01525 381910 or go to the contact page.

You can contact Pendley Manor’s Wedding Manager on weddings@pendley-manor.co.uk or 01442 820016.

Set in beautiful rolling Nottinghamshire parkland, Thrumpton Hall provides a magical setting for all kinds of events.

Our performance at Thrumpton Hall was for a wonderful 20th Anniversary party for Prominent Europe.

There were over 150 guests in attendance at Thrumpton Hall  including Japanese colleagues from Itochu, Prominent Europe’s parent company.

Prominent Europe are a garment design and manufacturing business with offices in the UK (near to Thrumpton Hall), Paris, Barcelona and Milan. The company supplies most of the high street retailers including Marks and Spencer, John Lewis, House of Fraser, Moss and Austin Reed with predominantly formal shirts, but also suits, trousers, casual shirts and ladies career wear.

They started their evening with a drinks reception in the famous Thrumpton Hall itself then moved to the permanent marquee in the beautiful grounds of Thrumpton Hall for their sit down dinner. This was followed by what can only be described as the best cake ever!

When the dinner and speeches were over we hit the stage with a storming set of party classics and many..many requests from the crowd!

The night had a special twist with a stunning firework display by Retford-based company Fuse Fireworks – one of the best displays I’ve seen recently.

The night was finished off by another set from us ending up with the boss in the middle of the dance floor showing off his moves!!!

Deborah who was the lovely lady that booked us from Prominent Europe came up to us at the end to say how much she had enjoyed the band and our performance ” It was just what I had wished for – you guys were brilliant!!”

I must make a special mention to Daniel Torridon the brilliant photographer and very nice chap who took some great pictures of the band and captured Thrumpton Hall perfectly! – check him out at: http://www.danieltorridon.com/

Our thanks go out to all the staff at Thrumpton Hall, JC and Paula for looking after us so well – if you’re looking for a great venue check out Thrumpton Hall!!

Thrumpton Hall is situated in Nottinghamshire, a couple of miles off  J24 of the M!.

Well….there are a few things that need to be thought of before we can answer that question:

1. How much space do you have for the band to set up in?
2. What sort of budget are you looking to spend?

The Choice perform from a 4 piece line up through to the ‘ultimate’ 8 piece combination and every size in-between – (see the line-up page)

The nucleus of the band has always been the 4 piece combination.  It is also worth pointing out that we are one of the few 4 piece bands to boast two girls in their line up plus both male and female lead vocalists.

From this ‘classic’ 4 piece line-up all other options are added: Alto Sax, Trumpet, Tenor Sax, Second Female Vocalist or Percussion.

Our most popular line up at the moment is the 6 piece: to include Sax and Trumpet.

The brass adds another layer to The Choice sound and to the visual look of the band as well.

A great feature is when Andy our lovely sax player performs the classic Madness song  ‘One Step Beyond’ – where he goes out into the audience playing and doing the Madness dance – usually joined  by the audience! – certainly something your guests will remember.

We have recently, following repeated requests added a Trio line-up, click here to listen:

The Trio specializes in Rock, Indie and all those great classic band songs – music with attitude. The Trio is an ideal solution for those on a tighter budget and for those wavering between booking  a disco or band. With the Trio you can usually afford to have both! – we can also supply the disco which we like to call  “Best of Both Worlds Option!”

Whatever line-up option you go for rest assured a great night will be had by all.

Through our experience and ability to read an audience The Choice is second to none, and our enthusiasm is without question the single most important feature what ever size line-up you choose!

We have performed at most of the major hotels in London but performing at the Waldorf Hotel always feels like something extra special.

Situated on the verdant, tree-lined thoroughfare of Aldwych, The Waldorf Hilton hotel enjoys a fabulous Covent Garden location in the heart of London’s theatre district.  This is one the UK’s most iconic hotels, as a band it gives us such pride to perform regularly these venues.

Waldorf Hotel London

Having performed at the Waldorf Hotel on many occasions we can testify to just how great their main ballroom  (the Adelphi suite) is as a venue. The acoustics are terrific and the layout perfect for that special event!

The famous Palm court suite is mainly used as a reception area to the larger Adelphi suite. We have also had the pleasure of performing with our Acoustic Choice trio in this historic room.

As a professional band it’s always been our ambition to play at the highest level.  After nights playing at these iconic venues you feel just that little bit more fulfilled!

A shot of the Three Locks Golf Club

Built alongside the Grand Union Canal The Three Locks Golf Club is one of those hidden venues that unless you’re a golf member wouldn’t realize what a great venue we have in the Leighton Buzzard area.

We performed at the Three Locks in January and were blown away by the food, decor and staff.  It also happens to be about 15 minutes away from where we live which is also great to think such a great venue is on our doorstep!

It’s not for the big corporate event, I would say it could hold 60  comfortably for dinner. The event we played at was for a birthday party for about 45 and that was just terrific!

As a professional band we are used to setting up in different spaces.  We carry around a modular PA set up so if we turn up and it’s a huge venue we can set up the full PA rig and the full lighting rig.  If however, as was the case at the Three Locks being a more intimate venue we can scale down the set up to fit into the interior and space available.

A shot of the Three Locks Golf Club

If you’re looking for a venue full of class with great food and atmosphere look no further. If you’re looking for a band to go with all that.. well you’re on just the right website!!!

We had 2 fabulous Birthday Parties this January (2013).  Both with such lovely hosts that not only looked after their guests but us as well – thank-you!

Sue was celebrating her 60th birthday with 40 of her closest friends at the fantastic Three Locks Golf club in Leighton Buzzard.

A shot of the Three Locks Golf Club

The Three Locks Golf Club is a perfect venue for an intimate party with room enough to dance, terrific food and great service.
Sue and a lot of her friends are all keen amateur dramatics performers so the pressure was on us to make sure that everyone danced and enjoyed the music – and they did!!

The guests we dined with a beautiful 3 course meal, followed by lots of drinking and dancing mayhem!

“Hi Russell, Sue and I just wanted to say again to you and all The Choice, thank you so much for playing at Sue’s birthday ‘do’ yesterday evening at the Three Locks Golf Club. Everyone we spoke to thoroughly enjoyed the music, as I hope you could tell.
All the best for now, and I hope to see you again some time. Kind regards Phillip and Sue”

The following week we played for Nicks 40th birthday celebration at the Old Albanians Rugby Club, St Albans.

A shot of Old Albanians Rugby Club

Apparently this is where the Saracens train, not being into Rugby I just looked as though I knew who the Saracens were when I was told!  The venue reminded me of an American diner/ bar – fantastic atmosphere with lots of room for drinking and dancing!

Hi Russell
Just to say a really big THANK YOU to you and the rest of the band for helping to make my Birthday Bash so great! Everyone commented on how good the band was so no doubt there’ll be some more bookings to follow!!!
I have to admit I felt a bit fragile the next day – old age perhaps but you’re only 40 once!!
Many thanks again and catch you soon! Cheers Nick

Both these parties were a huge success, partly down to 2 wonderful hosts who had great friends and families ready to party, but also due to them picking a brilliant band – US!
There is an art to playing to smaller crowds, it’s a lot more about engaging with the guests, picking the right songs, not too loud with lots of fun and most of all great music!!