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How to Make Money as a Wedding Singerby Suzann Kale
page 5 of 6 Your Musical Equipment
If your plan is to make money as a wedding singer, you have to have - or know how to get - the best audio equipment possible. Not the best you can afford, the best period. Amplified sound is tricky. Your particular voice can sound best through a certain brand and model of microphone, coupled with a specific amplification system. On the other hand, if you're going cheap, just trying to get by, and you use the wrong mike with some guitar-oriented amp, you will never get called back for another gig. You may have to borrow, you may have to
Take your time choosing your microphone. Test it with different amplification systems. Bring your sound engineer with you if you can. Try the system in different acoustics, such as outdoors, in a church, in a large reception type area, in a small intimate restaurant, and even over lots of talking and laughing. Your equipment must be able to not only sound good, but make you sound spectacular, in all acoustical environments. When you pick your band or your backup musicians, make sure their equipment is top of the line, too. Just as you can't be a ballerina without the best toe shoes, you can't sing without the best mike, mixing board, and backup musicians. Get to your gig at least an hour early to set up the equipment and test it before any of the guests start to arrive. Have with you extra cables, adapters, extension cords, music stands, lights for music stands for evening weddings, and anything else you can think of that could possibly be needed. If you'll be outdoors, make sure (well before the wedding date), that you'll have access to all the electricity you might need. continued below |
run up debt on the plastic, but if your plan is to make money as a wedding singer, you cannot cut back on top quality, well-chosen equipment.
A Wedding Singer's Contract with the ClientYou must have a standard contract, and it should be available on your website for potential customers and wedding planners to see. You can contract directly with the wedding planner, or you can have someone from the bridal party sign the contract. This is the piece of paper that will save you from ending up in small claims court. Make sure everything you need is specified, right down to the type of clothes you and the band will be expected to wear. The following websites have excellent examples of how you can approach your contract details: Diane Music at http://www.dianemusic.com/estimate.htm and http://www.dianemusic.com/faq.htm Michael Reavey Music at http://www.michaelreaveymusic.com/faq.html The Oracle Band at http://www.oracleband.net/FAQ.htm#Contract Here is a list of everything you should cover in your contract:
Make up an attractive-looking contract with your logo on top, so that even the contract can serve as a networking device. * How Much Should You Charge?This will depend on your location, and if you have some sort of celebrity status. Even local celebrities can charge more than the norm. Study the sites I've listed to see how different singers calculate their bands' costs for a wedding gig. See what other bands in your locale charge. On average, you may end up charging between $1250 and $4000 for 4 hours, using 4 musicians, with a 10 minute rest break per hour. At the WeddingKnow ahead of time what type of clothing your bride wants you to wear. Make sure your band members have what they need. If you're going to be involved in lugging equipment out of the van and crawling under electric pianos to hook things up, then wear jeans and bring your wedding singer's outfit with you. Plan for enough time to change after you've done a sound check and before the guests arrive. Be prepared to give the bride whatever type of m.c-ing she wants. Again, you and she will have gone over this beforehand. She may want you to be a master of ceremonies; she Wedding Singer back to page 1 back to page 2 back to page 3 back to page 4 |
may want you to play quietly in the background; she may want you to take requests; she may want you to allow her dad to sing Sunrise Sunset. Each wedding is different. Your job is to know what the bride wants and make sure she gets it. 
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