Question 1

How far in advance do we need to book your services?

Accepted Answer

Booking big bands in Essex as early as possible increases the chance of securing their availability on your event date, particularly during busy times of the year. However, many acts also accept last minute bookings, and we have successfully arranged performances for clients with just a few hours' notice.

Question 2

How much do big bands cost in Essex?

Accepted Answer

The cost of hiring musicians in Essex can vary significantly depending on the type of act. Prices currently range from £320 to £6,195, with an average of £1,550.

Question 3

What happens to the music when the band is on a break?

Accepted Answer

Most professional bands provide a playlist through their PA system during intervals, so there is no gap in the music and no awkward silence while they take a break. This is usually included as standard and the band will typically put together a playlist that fits the mood of the evening.

Some acts offer an upgraded DJ service where a member of the band or a dedicated DJ manages the music between sets, takes requests and keeps the energy going. This is usually available as a paid add-on. Check the act's profile or ask when enquiring if this is something you would like.

Question 4

Do I need to book a separate DJ as well as a band?

Accepted Answer

In most cases, no. The majority of professional bands provide music through their PA system during intervals and after their final set, so your guests will have continuous music throughout the evening without needing a separate DJ. This is usually included in the booking.

If you want a more interactive DJ experience, with someone to take requests, mix tracks and keep the dancefloor going after the band finishes, many bands offer this as an optional upgrade, or you can book a DJ separately. It is worth deciding early how late you want music to continue, as a band's final set will typically finish by midnight or the venue curfew, and a DJ can be a cost-effective way of extending the night.

Question 5

What happens if the band cannot make it on the day?

Accepted Answer

Professional bands take their commitments seriously and cancellations are rare, but illness, accidents or unforeseen circumstances can occasionally affect a booking. It is worth checking what provisions are in place when you book. Many acts and agencies have contingency arrangements, such as calling on dep musicians or arranging a suitable replacement act at short notice.

When booking, make sure you receive a written contract that sets out the cancellation terms clearly, for both sides. If you are booking through an agency, ask specifically what happens in the event the act cannot perform. Keeping communication open with your band in the weeks before the event also helps flag any potential issues early.

Question 6

What is a big band?

Accepted Answer

A big band is a large jazz or swing ensemble built around whole sections of horns rather than one or two brass players. The classic line-up runs to around seventeen musicians: four trumpets, four trombones, five saxophones and a rhythm section of piano, guitar, bass and drums.

In practice the acts listed here range from around ten players up to eighteen, and a few go beyond that once vocalists are counted. What they share is the sectional sound, where whole rows of brass and reeds play written arrangements together. That is what gives a big band its weight, and why it fills a room in a way a four or five piece cannot.

Jazz orchestra and dance orchestra are used to mean much the same thing, and some of the acts here describe themselves that way instead.

Question 7

How many musicians are in a big band?

Accepted Answer

Most of the big bands available here have between ten and eighteen musicians. Ten to twelve players gives you a full horn section and a rhythm section, which is enough for the authentic sound in most function rooms. Sixteen to eighteen is the traditional big band scale, with four trumpets, four trombones and five saxophones, and it makes a genuine spectacle on a larger stage. A few acts go beyond eighteen once additional vocalists are counted.

Size drives both the impact and the cost, because you are paying per musician. It also drives the practicalities. An eighteen piece band needs a much larger performance area, longer to set up, and more parking and load-in access than a five piece.

If your venue or your budget will not take the full band, say so when you enquire. Many of these acts offer a reduced line-up rather than turning the booking down.

Question 8

How much space does a big band need?

Accepted Answer

Considerably more than a standard function band, and it is the most common reason a big band booking does not work. Big bands play seated in rows behind music stands, so the space needed grows with every player rather than with the width of the stage alone.

As a guide, allow around 5m x 4m for a ten to twelve piece, and closer to 6m x 5m for a full sixteen to eighteen piece band. Add room at the back for the drum kit and at the sides for instrument cases, which stay accessible throughout the performance rather than being cleared away. A raised or tiered stage is not essential, but it helps the back row be seen and heard.

Measure your performance area before you enquire and send the dimensions with your message. If the room will not take the full band, most of these acts can bring a smaller line-up rather than you losing the booking.

Question 9

Can you hire a smaller big band line-up?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and it is one of the most common requests. Well over half the acts listed here mention their line-up options, and several state plainly that they will scale the band to suit the budget or the room.

A reduced big band usually keeps the rhythm section intact and trims the horns, so four trumpets and four trombones might come down to one or two of each, with the arrangements adjusted to suit. You keep the swing repertoire and the brass led character at a lower price, and in a space that would not hold the full band. Some acts market this as a mini big band or a small band version.

What you lose is the sheer weight of sound a full horn section produces. If the visual and sonic impact of a large band is the point of the booking, it is worth finding a venue that can take it rather than reducing the band.

Question 10

What music does a big band play?

Accepted Answer

The core repertoire is swing and jazz standards, and that is what most of these acts lead with. Around a third describe a Rat Pack strand, meaning Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr, and a smaller number specialise in the dance band era of Glenn Miller, Count Basie and Duke Ellington.

Around a third also cross into soul and Motown, which works well later in an evening when guests want to dance rather than listen. Several bands build a set that moves through the eras, opening with instrumental swing during a reception and finishing with something with more drive.

Modern material arranged for big band is common too, so a chart from the last twenty years played by a full horn section is a realistic request. If a particular song matters to you, ask early. Arranging for seventeen musicians takes considerably longer than teaching a four piece a cover.

Question 11

Are big bands a good choice for weddings?

Accepted Answer

They work best as an evening showpiece rather than as the band for your whole wedding day. Most of these acts describe wedding work, but only a handful mention ceremony or drinks reception coverage, and only a few mention learning a first dance. A big band is built around a large seated ensemble playing arrangements, which suits a set piece performance more than the background playing a daytime reception needs.

The usual pattern is a smaller act or a playlist during the day, then the big band for the evening once everyone is in one room. Guests notice a seventeen piece band walking on in a way they do not notice a four piece.

Check three things before you book: whether your venue's performance area takes the full band, whether the quote covers the hours you actually need them on site, and whether they will learn a specific song. Ask all three in your first message.

Question 12

Does a big band come with a singer?

Accepted Answer

Some do and some do not, and it is worth checking because it changes the character of the booking completely. Just under half the acts here mention a vocalist. The rest are instrumental jazz orchestras, where the arrangements themselves carry the performance.

A vocal fronted big band gives you the Sinatra and Rat Pack repertoire most people picture, with a frontperson who can handle announcements and work the room as well as sing. An instrumental band suits a drinks reception, a dinner or a listening audience, where a singer would draw more attention than you want.

A few acts field several vocalists, including full sections of backing singers, which is closer to a show than a function band. If you want a particular style of voice, or a specific era of material sung rather than played, say so when you enquire.

Question 13

How long does a big band perform for?

Accepted Answer

The standard is two sets of around forty five minutes within a two hour window, with a break in between, and that holds for big bands as it does for smaller acts.

Where big bands differ is the economics. You are paying a fee that covers ten to eighteen musicians, so extending the time on site costs more than it would with a four piece. Many bookers choose a shorter, more concentrated performance instead. A single sixty minute set as the centrepiece of an evening is a common choice, and often a better one than stretching the band across the whole night.

Set-up takes longer too. A large band needs more time to get in, seated and sound checked than a compact act, so allow for that when you plan the running order and ask what time they need access to the room.

Question 14

Do big bands perform outdoors?

Accepted Answer

Many will, and around a third of the acts here mention outdoor, marquee or festival work. A big band is a better outdoor prospect than most line-ups, because brass and saxophones carry naturally in open air where quieter instruments get lost.

The practical constraints are what catch people out. Music stands and sheet music do not cope with wind, so the band needs shelter or clips even on a dry day. Cold affects tuning on brass. The performance area has to be flat and firm enough for a drum kit and seventeen chairs, which rules out soft ground after rain. You will also need power close to the stage for the PA and any amplified instruments.

A marquee or a covered stage solves nearly all of this and is the usual answer. Tell the band what the setting is when you enquire rather than after you book, because it changes what they bring.

Question 15

What equipment does a big band provide?

Accepted Answer

Most big bands bring a PA suitable for the room, but the balance is different from a standard function band. A large horn section is genuinely loud without amplification, so the PA is mainly there for the vocals, and for quieter instruments such as guitar and double bass that would otherwise disappear behind the brass.

That has a practical upside. A big band can often perform with minimal amplification, or none at all, in a room where a smaller amplified act would need a full rig. It is worth asking, because it can solve a venue restriction.

Stage lighting is usually a separate cost, and acts will either add it or point you to a supplier. Chairs and music stands are the item most often forgotten. Some bands carry their own, others expect the venue to provide seventeen chairs and clear access to them. Confirm which before the day.

Question 16

Will a big band work in a venue with a sound limiter?

Accepted Answer

This needs more care than it does with a smaller band, and it is the one restriction that can rule a big band out altogether.

A sound limiter cuts the power to amplified equipment when the volume passes a set threshold. That works as a control on a band whose sound comes through a PA. A big band's volume is largely acoustic. Four trumpets and four trombones playing a full arrangement will trip a limiter set below about 95dB whether or not anything is plugged in, and turning the PA down does not fix it, because the PA was never the source.

Ask your venue for the exact decibel figure before you enquire. Above 95dB most big bands will be fine. Below that, be upfront with the band. The workable answers are a reduced line-up with fewer horns, a quieter style of playing throughout, or a different room. None of them are things to discover on the night.

Question 17

What is the difference between a big band and a swing band?

Accepted Answer

Mostly scale rather than repertoire, and the two overlap heavily. Twenty five of the thirty seven acts listed here also appear in our swing bands category, so in many cases you are looking at the same band under two labels.

The useful distinction is size and format. Big band describes the ensemble: sections of trumpets, trombones and saxophones playing written arrangements, usually ten players or more. Swing band describes the music, and a swing band can be a four piece with a single saxophone.

So if what you want is the sound of a full horn section, you want a big band. If you want swing era material at a smaller scale or a lower price, the swing bands category has far more choice, with over two hundred acts listed.

Question 18

What is a Rat Pack or Glenn Miller style big band?

Accepted Answer

They are the two most requested styles, and they make for quite different bookings.

A Rat Pack big band is vocal led. The repertoire is Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr, the delivery is showmanship and patter as much as singing, and the band behind is there to swing. Around a third of the acts here offer this, and some perform it as a full tribute with staging and costume rather than as a set of songs.

A Glenn Miller style band is instrumental and period specific. The sound is the American dance bands of the late thirties and forties, built on close harmony saxophones, and the material is written arrangements from that era rather than covers. A smaller number of acts specialise in it, and a few play on period instruments using original transcriptions.

If you are booking for a themed event, say which of the two you mean. The bands that do both will bring different sets.

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