Wedding Band Typical Costs

Enigma IE · 27-02-2012 3:39pm #1

Hi,
What's the typical cost of a wedding band, excluding DJ? Standard 2-2.5 hour set or whatever. Do they typically include travel related expenses, if the gig is not local to them?

Thanks.

justmusic · 27-02-2012 3:54pm

pm sent:):)

keyboardcook · 02-03-2012 4:27pm

It's like any product or service, and will range from 500 to 3000, depending on who you get to do it.

The key to this is to make sure you see the band live before you book them, and see as many as possible to get a good overall comparison on prices.

Decide what style of band you want- Rat Pack jazz, theme bands, rock and pop, country- there are many types.

Popular bands may be booked as many as 12 to 18 months in advance, so begin your search as early as possible.

I've sent you a PM with my own group (shameless self promotion).

the_syco · 02-03-2012 4:34pm

Gate-crash a few weddings, to see what the bands you're looking into are like live.

keyboardcook · 02-03-2012 4:36pm

Errr! To be fair, how would you like gate crashers at your wedding?

godfrey · 03-03-2012 4:27pm

Prepare to be hosed!
Bands who play bars for maybe €300 will charge €1500 or more to play the same set at a wedding. I think it's disgraceful. I hope you find a great band at a reasonable price, and you have a super day...

g

keyboardcook · 03-03-2012 6:08pm

Actually godfrey, bands will play in a pub for free and charge 1500 for a wedding.

In business it is called a lost leader.

Look at the average amount of hours spent per individual at a pub gig- between preparation and set up, playing, take down etc you are looking at five hours.

Split between five guys, that works out at 12 euro per hour late night.

Take out cost of transport, tolls, repayments on equipment, wear and tear on equipment and vehicles, it doesn't really leave much to be desired.

So, as I said- a lost leader in the hope of getting a return on real business.

It is business at the end of the day, and a professional musician will have children to feed like any other professional.

However, if you would be happy to pay someone five euros take home per hour to play at your wedding, knock yourself out.

Peanuts=monkeys,

Herb Powell · 03-03-2012 10:13pm

godfrey wrote: »

Prepare to be hosed!
Bands who play bars for maybe €300 will charge €1500 or more to play the same set at a wedding. I think it's disgraceful. I hope you find a great band at a reasonable price, and you have a super day...

g

How is it disgraceful, exactly?

Fandango · 05-03-2012 2:01am

Herb Powell wrote: »

How is it disgraceful, exactly?

Look at the IW thread, this guy seems to be very anti-bands! Seems the thousands bands pay for gear/rehersals and recordings means we should all still either charge little or pay to play.

Herb Powell · 05-03-2012 11:45am

Fandango wrote: »

Look at the IW thread, this guy seems to be very anti-bands! Seems the thousands bands pay for gear/rehersals and recordings means we should all still either charge little or pay to play.

Yeah, I noticed after I posted this. I think he's completely oblivious to reality.

It's all well and good saying "they play for €400 in pubs, why charge more for weddings? Disgracederp", but there are many good reasons why.
1. YOU might think €300/€400/whatever is great pay for a night's work, but that's not all going to one person-there's more than one person in a band. And the likes of wedding bands, generally, have A LOT more than one member. Also remember, there's more to a band than the people playing the instruments (unless they do all the extra work involved themselves-extra work).
2. Pub gigs, for the bands of wedding-playing standard, are usually regular-they'll be playing a rotation of certain venues, that they can (somewhat) depend on. Weddings are private affairs, a band may have to take time off playing a regular slot/work/whatever else.
3. Playing a wedding usually means travelling for the band and all their gear. This isn't free.
4. What would you reckon is a fair price for a plumber/some other type of private contractor for a few hours work at an odd unsociable time?

That's all I can think of right now (I had another point, but I've forgotten it), but there are plenty reasons why €1000-€1500 is a fairly standard rate for a wedding band to charge. An incredible amount of work goes into ensuring they sound their best when you hire them, and despite what many people seem to think, the vast majority of bands are not "living the life", making "money for nothing". To deny them fair pay is, in my opinion, just being a bolloccks.
EDIT; just realised my points were already made by keyboardcook above, ah well.

mada999 · 05-03-2012 1:57pm

yep, and i hope the cover band are registered for tax.........

Claim The Frame · 05-03-2012 2:00pm

Once the word wedding is mentioned the price seems to triple for everything! It really depends on the band you are going for they can be anywhere between €800 to €5000 in my experience!

Enigma IE · 05-03-2012 2:31pm

Thanks for the feedback. I already had a band in mind, spoke to their manager and got a price. I think its a reasonable price for a wedding band of this quality, plus the commute to and from the venue. The fact its a wedding means the price is often tripled or more, that's the nature of the game unfortunately.

Going to see them live in couple of weeks, give the OH a chance to see them, then do the deal if she's happy.

Claim The Frame · 05-03-2012 4:37pm

Enigma IE wrote: »

Thanks for the feedback. I already had a band in mind, spoke to their manager and got a price. I think its a reasonable price for a wedding band of this quality, plus the commute to and from the venue. The fact its a wedding means the price is often tripled or more, that's the nature of the game unfortunately.

Going to see them live in couple of weeks, give the OH a chance to see them, then do the deal if she's happy.

Great enjoy it, it's such an exciting time!;)

spankadamonkee · 06-03-2012 10:15am

Enigma IE wrote: »

Thanks for the feedback. I already had a band in mind, spoke to their manager and got a price. I think its a reasonable price for a wedding band of this quality, plus the commute to and from the venue. The fact its a wedding means the price is often tripled or more, that's the nature of the game unfortunately.

Going to see them live in couple of weeks, give the OH a chance to see them, then do the deal if she's happy.

No recession here then. Especially if you are willing to pay a band manager aswell. Fair play

Enigma IE · 06-03-2012 10:31am

spankadamonkee wrote: »

No recession here then. Especially if you are willing to pay a band manager aswell. Fair play

To be fair, how they split the fee is nothing to do with me. If they employ a manager to handle their bookings, scheduling and I'm sure dealing with crap, so be it.

I've agreed a €1600 fee with them, which includes 400km round trip for them, plus whatever tolls. It's a fair price for a well-known band, usually 4 or 5 piece, plus I've seen them live at least 3 times myself in at regular gigs.

godfrey · 09-03-2012 12:22am

Fandango wrote: »

Look at the IW thread, this guy seems to be very anti-bands!

You know nothing about me and that's a rediculous, insulting and uninformed statement.

I am, however, keen on fair play and I don't believe the fees charged for wedding bands reflect fair play. Why should a band demand 4-5 times more to play at a wedding than what they are happy to accept for a bar gig?

g

happyman81 · 09-03-2012 1:00am

godfrey wrote: »

Prepare to be hosed!
Bands who play bars for maybe €300 will charge €1500 or more to play the same set at a wedding. I think it's disgraceful. I hope you find a great band at a reasonable price, and you have a super day...

g

Dead right. I have seen some god awful bands at weddings. So bad, it actually annoyed me that they were so bad, so unprofessional and yet getting paid silly money. In fact, the majority of wedding bands I have seen have been of a very poor standard.

To the OP, like people say, try to see the band play before you book them. Anyone can make themselves look good in a video or demo.

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4 · 09-03-2012 3:58pm

godfrey wrote: »

I am, however, keen on fair play and I don't believe the fees charged for wedding bands reflect fair play. Why should a band demand 4-5 times more to play at a wedding than what they are happy to accept for a bar gig?

g

We dont charge anything extra for a wedding, unless there are lots of requests in advance, we need to play longer or we do a dj set at the end. Our fee is bases on a few simple factors. The size of the venue, the smaller the venue the less equiptment we need, so we can get set up quickly and packed up quickly. How far we need to travel. Mid week gigs may cost extra if members have to take a day off work, only fair.

You get what you pay for. I play rock/pop covers, not a typical wedding band. I was at a wedding last summer, and the band were amazing. I had never heard of them. They were able to entertain ages 8-80, which is what you want for a wedding band.

Herb Powell · 09-03-2012 4:19pm

godfrey wrote: »

You know nothing about me and that's a rediculous, insulting and uninformed statement.

I am, however, keen on fair play and I don't believe the fees charged for wedding bands reflect fair play. Why should a band demand 4-5 times more to play at a wedding than what they are happy to accept for a bar gig?

g

I, and other posters have explained it. Given circumstances, wedding pay is fair.

Herb Powell · 09-03-2012 4:22pm

happyman81 wrote: »

Dead right. I have seen some god awful bands at weddings. So bad, it actually annoyed me that they were so bad, so unprofessional and yet getting paid silly money. In fact, the majority of wedding bands I have seen have been of a very poor standard.

To the OP, like people say, try to see the band play before you book them. Anyone can make themselves look good in a video or demo.

?????? How much is silly money in your opinion??
Btw I do agree that you should go see a band before booking them for anything, judge yourself. If you complain after, then you're a moany ****

happyman81 · 09-03-2012 4:35pm

Herb Powell wrote: »

happyman81 wrote: »

Dead right. I have seen some god awful bands at weddings. So bad, it actually annoyed me that they were so bad, so unprofessional and yet getting paid silly money. In fact, the majority of wedding bands I have seen have been of a very poor standard.

To the OP, like people say, try to see the band play before you book them. Anyone can make themselves look good in a video or demo.

?????? How much is silly money in your opinion??
Btw I do agree that you should go see a band before booking them for anything, judge yourself. If you complain after, then you're a moany ****

€1500 to bash out a few covers songs is crazy money. I also think €300 is too low for bands to play in bars, I did it myself and found that the time and effort it took to work on our set simply didn't make it worth my while. But €1500 is just crazy, especially judging by the quality of wedding bands I have seen. Most of them play with one eye on the door the whole night, are mediocre musicians, and have no stage presence. For that you could end up paying thousands. I'm sure there must be quality acts out there, but I have been to more than a few weddings, and I have never been impressed once. Not once. In my opinion, the whole wedding band industry seems based around exploiting the married couple, just as the photographer, florist, etc do. One big racket.

I would pay that money for a quality wedding act, but unfortunately most people can't spot the difference.

Herb Powell · 09-03-2012 7:14pm

happyman81 wrote: »

€1500 to bash out a few covers songs is crazy money. I also think €300 is too low for bands to play in bars, I did it myself and found that the time and effort it took to work on our set simply didn't make it worth my while. But €1500 is just crazy, especially judging by the quality of wedding bands I have seen. Most of them play with one eye on the door the whole night, are mediocre musicians, and have no stage presence. For that you could end up paying thousands. I'm sure there must be quality acts out there, but I have been to more than a few weddings, and I have never been impressed once. Not once. In my opinion, the whole wedding band industry seems based around exploiting the married couple, just as the photographer, florist, etc do. One big racket.

I would pay that money for a quality wedding act, but unfortunately most people can't spot the difference.

And I agree fully. A quality band is worth it.

AoifeCork · 10-03-2012 8:45pm

happyman81 wrote: »

€1500 to bash out a few covers songs is crazy money.

Oh sweetie... anyone that would seek out a wedding band and think so little of their own day that "bashing out songs" would be the height of their talent/contribution for €1500 is clearly insane in the first place... You want somebody to stand there po-faced and churn out some 3 chords tricks? Then yes, of course 1500 is insane. You want a professional outfit that will entertain, impress, look well, be at the fore of your guests enjoyment and make your day as special as they can? You need to pay them accordingly.

Let's say 2000 for a 10 piece... that's 200 each... factor in taxes, petrol costs etc.. we're getting paid about 20 euro an hour, roughly speaking.

happyman81 · 10-03-2012 9:14pm

AoifeCork wrote: »

Oh sweetie... anyone that would seek out a wedding band and think so little of their own day that "bashing out songs" would be the height of their talent/contribution for €1500 is clearly insane in the first place... You want somebody to stand there po-faced and churn out some 3 chords tricks? Then yes, of course 1500 is insane. You want a professional outfit that will entertain, impress, look well, be at the fore of your guests enjoyment and make your day as special as they can? You need to pay them accordingly.

Let's say 2000 for a 10 piece... that's 200 each... factor in taxes, petrol costs etc.. we're getting paid about 20 euro an hour, roughly speaking.

€1500 was the number quoted above, sweetie ("Bands who play bars for maybe €300 will charge €1500 or more to play the same set at a wedding."). €2000 for the likes of what I have seen at weddings would be criminal. Like I said, yet to see a good wedding band, looking forward to seeing one, but not expecting to any time soon. Why? Because people who provide wedding services tend to offer the lowest quality for the highest price. I see no reason why bands would be exempt, and my own observations have failed to reject that theory... so far.

Like I said, I'm sure there are plenty of great acts out there. But they are in the minority, and the rest are around the same price. What hope do the organisers have with so much crap out there?

Not attacking your band (unless you were one of the bands I saw) here, you could be one of the rare good ones!

SuperGrover · 12-03-2012 2:16pm

A lot of bars will provide PA and engineer on site. Besides cost-saving, it also minimizes hassle.

For a wedding, the band usually has to supply all this.

But, yeah, some function bands are dreadful. Some aren't, though, and will usually charge what the market will bear.

SuperGrover · 12-03-2012 2:24pm

Also, forgot to mention, a band may play 'pub' gigs in order to hone / perfect their act and try out new material live. The fruits of that labour will then show when being hired directly for a wedding / event.

triggermortis · 12-03-2012 9:40pm

I had troubles with a wedding band for my own wedding a few years ago. Initially, a friends band were going to play - we were going to cover expenses as they were travelling to Dublin from Cavan, but they had only done a handful of gigs and so were not a polished act. My brother and I were going to jam on 3 or 4 songs as we used to be in a band years ago.
All this was agreed months in advance until a month before, they suddenly decided they were worth 1500 plus expenses.
Ended up getting another friend of a friends ex band to reform and play for the night for half that, plus I picked up their bar tab so everyone was happy.

SuperGrover · 12-03-2012 9:48pm

Fair enough. If they weren't a polished act, a bit cheeky to ask for that money, especially as they had agreed a different price.

I'm in a band that so far have primarily played pubs, etc. but we're being asked to do weddings, have a few booked now. We do mainly covers but we don't do Sweet Caroline on request. We're a 10 piece, all good musicians, great set, hugely rehearsed, and play a particular genre of music. So, we go down well at functions but we don't sell ourselves as such, primarily to protect our right to play music we think is good, rather than being dictated to.

There's not much point us playing a private function, where we supply all the equipment, etc. for less than, say, 1500 or thereabouts. It's just reality and if we don't get booked for these, so be it, we'll play anywhere for the love of the music, even pubs for 300, as they're usually fairly hassle-free gigs and we get to play to a good crowd.

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4 · 13-03-2012 5:33pm

happyman81 wrote: »

€1500 to bash out a few covers songs is crazy money. I also think €300 is too low for bands to play in bars

Im surprised nobody has pointed this out yet. at the moment, my 4 piece band would get 300-400 for a standard pub set on a sat night in 2012, however, in 2006, that would have been around 700. Difference being, the pubs were literally full then, they are not now. There are less pubs now, gigs are harder come by and the pay is a lot less, also diesel was a LOT cheaper then. 300-400 now is tiny money, and at times im wonder why i still do it.

Look at the big professional cover bands, I wont name names, but with them you know what your getting, and for the most part are amazing musicans.
paying 1000 for a 4 piece professional band, each member getting 250 is a myth. Bands are, in most cases owned by one or two members who do the day to day running of the band, such as buying the gear, maintaining the gear, booking gigs, putting diesel in the van, make van payments. The other members are given a set list and dates for gigs, and are have a set wage per gig. Same as any other business where you have "the boss" and his workers.

Who is to say what is a good price for a wedding band? how long is a piece of string? Go and see as many as you can, if you like them, its 100% up to the bride and groom to determine if the price is correct.

happyman81 · 13-03-2012 6:22pm

I think up to 1000 is fair for a solid 4-5 piece cover (wedding) band. If you want to add a brass section, etc, then obviously the price rises. My posts above refer to your standard pub cover band charging well over 1000 for what is often sub-standard fare.

westmeathband · 04-04-2012 1:19pm

Lads.... as a professional entertainer for over 20 years, I am appaled how this thread has been built up and torn down.

Lets get down to the nitty gritty.

2 piece band travelling 100km playing wedding for €1000.00 = €1500 PA system in a seat inca, one lad playing guitar singing and the other playing keyboard, playing styles from keyboard or €1.99 backing tracks for 2 hours.

less €30 for diesel in seat inca, (and assuming that no 2 piece in their right minds pays tax) total profit is 485 each

ON THE OTHER HAND......

5 piece professional band with website, CRO reg´d, VAT Reg´d and compliant etc doing same gig charging 2000

EXPENSES:

Merc sprinter lease (CREW CAB)
Public Liabilty Insurance
Commercial Motor insurance with 2.5 million indemnity
30K of PA, lights etc
Multiple instruments that require ongoing servicing
liasing with client, phone calls email etc.
rehearsals (any good band do 2 a week)
a band this size will show up at 7pm to play at 9:30 (pro bands know hotels run late)

NOW:
Less VAT, Less 20% income tax, (43% straight off the top)
total earned: €1112

5 way split = 222
LESS income tax (Assuming they work @ 40%)
total earned about €100 PER MAN!!!!!

in reality, a corporate band earn half to a QUARTER compared to their dodging counterparts.
If a dodgy band wrecked your wedding, you would have no grounds to defend yourself, whereas a PRO outfit..............

Well, professionals don´t ruin weddings, but if they did, they would have to play in the domains of the law, and can sue, and be sued!

does that €1000 look so appealing now?

westmeathband · 04-04-2012 1:28pm

happyman81 wrote: »

I think up to 1000 is fair for a solid 4-5 piece cover (wedding) band. If you want to add a brass section, etc, then obviously the price rises. My posts above refer to your standard pub cover band charging well over 1000 for what is often sub-standard fare.

i assume you dont play, as you haven´t a CLUE what your talking about.

no point in keyboard bashing complaining about these "God Awful" bands you hear at weddings.
Maybe your friends are booking cheap bands, and telling you they are costing more, getting bigger presents from you guys etc.

Don´t get me wrong, there are BRUTAL bands out there, but none that play weddings, there are the stable 50 in the country, and in fairness, if brides and grooms leave it to the last minute to book a band, they should expect nothing less than the dregs of the barrell!!!!

start a band dude...... you´d be the cheapest in the country!!!!!!

peanuts = Monkeys!:D:D:D

happyman81 · 04-04-2012 1:56pm

westmeathband wrote: »

happyman81 wrote: »

I think up to 1000 is fair for a solid 4-5 piece cover (wedding) band. If you want to add a brass section, etc, then obviously the price rises. My posts above refer to your standard pub cover band charging well over 1000 for what is often sub-standard fare.

i assume you dont play, as you haven´t a CLUE what your talking about.

no point in keyboard bashing complaining about these "God Awful" bands you hear at weddings.
Maybe your friends are booking cheap bands, and telling you they are costing more, getting bigger presents from you guys etc.

Don´t get me wrong, there are BRUTAL bands out there, but none that play weddings, there are the stable 50 in the country, and in fairness, if brides and grooms leave it to the last minute to book a band, they should expect nothing less than the dregs of the barrell!!!!

start a band dude...... you´d be the cheapest in the country!!!!!!

peanuts = Monkeys!:D:D:D

I am a musician, something you could have out by reading the thread properly. I have been to several weddings and I have never been impressed with a single band. Not one. Again, you could have found this out by simply reading the thread. I tried to avoid your style of crass generalisations, by saying that I am sure that some bands out there are probably great, again, something you could have found out by reading the thread. Instead of reading the thread, you just jumped straight to be offended, as you assumed that I was directly attacking your band, which I wasn't, again this could have been learned by reading the thread.

Let me know if you want me to clarify this again.

westmeathband · 04-04-2012 2:33pm

happyman81 wrote: »

I am a musician, something you could have out by reading the thread properly. I have been to several weddings and I have never been impressed with a single band. Not one.

well you don´t post like a working musician.... not a PRO one anyway.

And as a musician, your ego will take over, as you scrutinise every little thing going on.

i dont suffer from "Crass Generalisations", I state the facts, as a professional, which you are oblivious/ignorant to.

I have listed the various outlining expenses/logistics that a professional band entails versus the "Typical Pub Band". albeit covers or originals.

Bottom Line, unless they are doing a showcase (which is normally in a hotel) you will rarely see a Pro wedding band play pubs, as they can fill their diary with Parties, Functions, Moter-in-law´s funerals etc. it will be a cold day in hell you will ever see these bands giggiing in The Pint!

and i never said you were attacking MY band, you are attacking bands in general. which means you are biased, to yourself, and your opinions.

I bet when these "God Awful" bands were at these weddings, i could put a months salary that YOU were the only one that complained, or at least were a hypocrite, and went up to them and told them that they were great, nice Strat... Have ye ever heard of.. EGO TRIP.......EGO TRIP..EGO TRIP..

I don´t think you will need to clarify anything on this. as being quite honest, i don´t want to hear it.

plus i dont think you are a PRO musician in the sense, bedroom warrior at the absolute least, as there is not 1 musician in this country that would charge X when they can get Y....... yet alone be good enough that you could take a night off to go to a wedding, when you could be playing at one.

i´ve yet to see EOA make the Weddings OnLine top 100 bands...........

happyman81 · 04-04-2012 3:22pm

westmeathband wrote: »

happyman81 wrote: »

I am a musician, something you could have out by reading the thread properly. I have been to several weddings and I have never been impressed with a single band. Not one.

well you don´t post like a working musician.... not a PRO one anyway.

And as a musician, your ego will take over, as you scrutinise every little thing going on.

i dont suffer from "Crass Generalisations", I state the facts, as a professional, which you are oblivious/ignorant to.

I have listed the various outlining expenses/logistics that a professional band entails versus the "Typical Pub Band". albeit covers or originals.

Bottom Line, unless they are doing a showcase (which is normally in a hotel) you will rarely see a Pro wedding band play pubs, as they can fill their diary with Parties, Functions, Moter-in-law´s funerals etc. it will be a cold day in hell you will ever see these bands giggiing in The Pint!

and i never said you were attacking MY band, you are attacking bands in general. which means you are biased, to yourself, and your opinions.

I bet when these "God Awful" bands were at these weddings, i could put a months salary that YOU were the only one that complained, or at least were a hypocrite, and went up to them and told them that they were great, nice Strat... Have ye ever heard of.. EGO TRIP.......EGO TRIP..EGO TRIP..

I don´t think you will need to clarify anything on this. as being quite honest, i don´t want to hear it.

plus i dont think you are a PRO musician in the sense, bedroom warrior at the absolute least, as there is not 1 musician in this country that would charge X when they can get Y....... yet alone be good enough that you could take a night off to go to a wedding, when you could be playing at one.

i´ve yet to see EOA make the Weddings OnLine top 100 bands...........

Probably because we are not a wedding band, or a cover band. I used to be in a cover band, and it made me want to blow my brains out. Each to their own.

Cheers for the personal attacks by the way. I guess thats my reward for being reasonable.

I'll leave it there, I really shouldn't dignify this by responding any further.

westmeathband · 04-04-2012 4:59pm

no personal attack intended buddy, and if you feel I did, I apologise.
we are ALL guilty (as musicians) of doing the "that band´s useless" spiel now and then.

it´s just amazing that none of the corp bands, or their management clarifed, or justified their cost, which is a realistic fact.

Being in this business, and knowing it inside out, from the player end, to the management end, i thought it would be beneficial to outline the costs involved in putting something like that on the road. these are realistic costs I face every day.

I believe it gives piece of mind to the bride/groom that their money is not being spent on a half-arsed outfit, there is a FINE line between a great night, and a ruined wedding, and as the band, along with the photographs, are the one thing they will see more than once, as they will be on the wedding video.

at least the expense, i feel i have justified, in an ideal world.

let´s leave it at this, as i don´t want to hog the thread any futher than required.

Wedding Band Typical Costs

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