Frequently Asked Questions
What is your starting price?
£250 for certain solo musicians in London weddings.
What services do you offer?
Providing reliable professional musicians and DJs. Helping with choice of musical act and then the music played by the act. Helping with great choices of ceremony music. Advising on best acts with particular venues and styles of wedding. Co ordinating the logistics of the live music with the venue. Creating professional arrangements of favourite songs for the wedding. Sorting out the finer details and then passing on to the artist. Sourcing interesting and unusual acts for particular themed weddings.
What is included in the wedding package?
A wedding package can include music for the ceremony, reception and evening dance. Each package is bespoke and based on individual needs/taste of every client. In a basic package of a string quartet for your wedding, it would include 4 highly accomplished professional musicians, a great repertoire with some exclusive pop arrangements and a smart, punctual and friendly service on the day as well as in the correspondence prior to the big day.
How far in advance should I contact you?
The earlier, the better! The reason is that we get multiple enquiries for the same dates and have to work on a first come, first served basis. We guarantee availability and so once you book with us, you can tick it off the list. On the other hand, if you get near the end of the planning and find you have enough budget left for entertainment that you weren't sure about earlier, just get in touch also as if the date is a good one, we may still be able to help and have several contrasting acts to chose from.
What style of music do you offer?
A real mix. We work with several acts, so it depends on which one. But many of our acts covers classical, jazz, pop, TV/film and sometimes Latin/dance. Tell us what you like and we'll try and find the act to match! We're also happy to look into special musical requests which if not available we can professionally arrange at a small additional cost to make your music even more personal.
Type of musical group:
Many. Liquid Strings started as a string quartet playing a great mix of classical and pop. But although we kept the name we expanded since 2007 and now have singers, gospel choirs, big bands, jazz bands, trumpet groups, DJs that play with electric violinists, and more. We like diverse types of music and think that all have a place in different weddings. Many of our clients use music to express their individuality, taste and style in their wedding (as well as other aspects of the day). We help them to tailor their vision and turn it into reality on the day.
Size of musical group:
Varied - from a solo guitarist to a 16 piece gospel choir or 17 piece big band, via lots of other acts. We can go larger or smaller depending on what you're looking for. Packages are bespoke and very much based on a consultation and your individual requirements.
Repertoire:
Also very varied - for the string quartet as an example, we play Pachelbel Canon and Wedding March - but we also play Sam Smith, John Legend, Pharrell, Michael Jackson, David Guetta and many others. We like to span the old classics with the hot new favourites and think it's nice to have a few for your grandparents as well as the kids that may be present at the wedding.
Is it possible to request something that is not in the repertoire?
Yes - sometimes this costs more and sometimes we can find a version easily and prepare it. Always best to ask and we'll look into it for you.
Experience:
All our musicians and DJs are highly experienced. They've been involved with loads of weddings, often several hundred, and they know what they're doing. They also realise that being nice and friendly and courteous isn't an extra but part of the job. We've covered celebrity weddings and tiny ones with 4 or 5 guests. No two weddings are exactly the same and we treat each booking as completely unique, the same as each client.
Do you have your own equipment?
Yes - we have lots of equipment and PLI certificate if the venue doesn't know us and is concerned about these things. Our acts that use electrical equipment make sure that it is PAT tested which some venues request.
Are you able to travel?
Yes we are on most dates. Depending on how far, it may cost more than local weddings and we can always give best costings for London. But we've played in venues in Surrey, Kent, Sussex, Herts and all the areas around London.
Is there a charge for travelling?
Yes although we try and keep this down. But for weddings that are in the midlands or one of the coasts, we do have to charge more as these weddings take more like a day with all the travel and us allowing extra time for travel.
Do you cover more than one wedding a day?
We sometimes cover 2 weddings in a day. We would never rush from one to another as this is highly unprofessional. We do have enough artists to cover more than one wedding however.
Do you work alone or do you have a team of professionals?
We have a small team of professionals.
What is the length of time of the act?
This varies but most acts vary between 1 - 3 hours in the length of time that they are performing (not including the set up time which is not charged for).
How much time do you need to prepare for an act?
For acoustic acts, it's usually only about 15 - 30 mins. For electric ones, they usually arrive 1 -2 hours earlier to set up and do a soundcheck. We are flexible and can be quicker when a faster turnaround is required.
Do you charge per hour or per event?
Per event but also based on the length of time of that event and what is required. Sometimes there are no musical requests and we know that we can arrive, play music that we know will sound great and then leave. We may charge more if there are lots of musical requests and extra requirements within a wedding.
If needed, would you be able to work extra hours
Yes but usually only if fixed in advance. We often have other events to go to on the same date so cannot guarantee that we can stay for longer. Generally weddings are ordered as such that it's easy to know the time slot that will work well and then you know that extra time won't be required.
How do you charge for extra time?
With weddings, we find it better to fix the times in advance and we can help guide you with this. Overtime is not always possible due to going on to other events, but if we were available and it was fine with all our players then we would do our best to keep the costs down.
What are the forms of payment?
BACS is our preferred form of payment but Paypal is also possible and secure card payments online.
What sets you apart from other entertainment agencies?
As a smaller company than most agencies, we are able to keep things as simple as possible. You'll never be passed from one person to another or have to ask the same questions twice. We're also highly responsive and unless we're genuinely unable to, will reply to enquiries and then questions after booking quickly and in a helpful manner. Although we understand music in a technical way, we never use jargon and love to make things clear and simple. We're very service-focused and love our clients, without whom we would not have a great business!