When playing music for a group as a professional DJ, dinner music can be either one of the easiest or most challenging aspects of a gig. How can dinner music be challenging you ask? Good question.
There are the ‘guest wars’ over volume and musical styles. Uncle Joe wants “Some nice old Italian music, you know, Jerry Vale and Frank Sinatra” and the Groom is concerned that “My Polish family will go crazy without any Polkas at a wedding” then the Bride, who booked the event to begin with wants “Slow, Soulful music” and the original playlist you discussed called for Western Classical music during dinner with some Smooth Jazz. You can see how this can be confusing. So what does a professional Wedding DJ do to satisfy all these contrasting tastes and requests?
Play them all! Since the dinner potion of an event, especially a wedding, will last about an hour; this is when you can spread your wings and let them all get some airtime. Maybe start with some Smooth Jazz and segue into some Slow, Soulful music. When that has run its course, a Polish Polka or two will make the Groom and his family happy knowing that a couple more Smooth Jazz tunes will be needed to transition to the Italian favorites Uncle Joe demanded. As dinner hits the main course, relaxing Classical Music is always a positive choice being mindful that many of these pieces will have slow gentle beginnings but full-bodied upbeat middles that may not be suitable for dinner music. It is important to always pre-cue your selections and take a quick listen to make certain it is good dinner music for this event.
Dinner music is a time for letting people enjoy food, conversation, connecting, maybe even introductions and getting in the mood for whatever will follow. The middle of dinner should be the mellowest of music with the coffee and desert portion moving a little bit more upbeat to segue into the danceable music to follow. Be warned though, if your music is too good, you may have people leaving their full plates and heading to the dance floor. I have experienced this several times as a professional Wedding DJ and am sure if it is a sign of doing a good job or taking from the event itself. You be the judge.
I encourage all new professional DJs to not fall into the habit that many professional DJs do of running dinner solely on Auto-Mix and not paying any attention to what is going on. Remember, dinner sets the mood for the event and you want to be sure everybody is being prepared for a great night! Watch and feel what is working with the guests even though they are not dancing. Feel the vibe and energy and choose your selections accordingly. We are the entertainment and entertainers do not go on auto-pilot. Bring the same energy and focus to dinner as you do to the rest of the gig and it will provide the foundation for a successful event for everybody!
