Hiring a Band for a Virtual Event – A Short Guide
In this blog post, we'll list some of the best bands and musicians available for virtual events, including tips, advice and how much you can expect to pay when hiring a band for an online party.
COVID-19 has impacted the world in unprecedented ways and changed our very ways of living, working and communicating.
At FixTheMusic, we deeply sympathise with all those affected by the pandemic and encourage everyone to stay safe.
Adopting new ways of living has been central to many people’s lockdown life, and embracing the virtual has been a lifeline for many.
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Email us at hello@fixthemusic.com with your request.
2021 was the year of online socialising, from Skype hang-outs to Zoom parties and work drinks, we’ve done it all. We’ve swapped IRL for online, and though not the same, it can be just as rewarding.
Top tip from our live events experts...
Acoustic duos, solo singers & musicians, and small acoustic bands are perfect for Zoom calls and smaller online events:
View our complete list of acoustic duos ➡️
For larger online conferences and ceremonies, our party bands are the perfect accompaniment:
View our complete list of party bands ➡️
The bands and musicians we work with at FixTheMusic have also adapted to this new way of living and working – from teaching online to setting up home studios and online streaming, so they can continue to perform for recording sessions and send videos to corporate clients and wedding couples around the world.
FixTheMusic has recently provided live music for virtual events and conferences for numerous leading organisation, brands and startups in the UK, Europe and USA, including Amazon, Salesforce, Hewlett-Packard, Allianz, Accenture and Bitmovin, as well as private events and birthday parties. These vary from Zoom calls with only a handful of friends and family, to large-scale conferences with upwards of 600 participants.
Check out some of the videos to get an idea of what's possible...
As lockdown begins to ease, we are beginning to taste a sense of normality again, going to the shops and the parks, and enjoying the beautiful British summertime. However, it looks like it may be some time before en masse gatherings can take place, with birthday parties, corporate work events and weddings being delayed.
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But fear not! At FixTheMusic we have a range of bands and entertainers perfect for virtual events, whether it's your 50th wedding anniversary, work happy hour, corporate teambuilding session and conference calls, or best mate's stag do, we’ve got you covered.
And with winter fast approaching, many of our bands are also gearing up to provide live musical entertainment for corporate online virtual Christmas parties, with Christmas carols and classic festive songs in their repertoire, as well as live music for online New Year's Eve parties and other NYE celebrations. Another popular choice is to hire virtual carol singers, as performed by a Christmas choir.
The perfect gift for Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day in 2022 is likely to be very different to previous years, with couples unable to enjoy the usual treats of a cinema date, romantic meal for 2 at a local restaurant or weekend city break. Instead, many partners are choosing to hire a singer or musician to sing for their loved ones remotely – often performing a bespoke arrangement of a special song over Zoom or on the doorstep of the couple's house.
We think smaller bands, duos and singers work brilliantly for virtual get-togethers and online events, and we have many for you to choose from. Acoustic duos, mariachi bands, harpists, violinists, sax players and DJs are all incredibly well suited for online performances and can easily adapt their playing style to fit with your needs.
You can email us at hello@fixthemusic.com with any specific requirements you have for live music at your virtual event.
Recently, one of our all-female London-based mariachi bands was booked for a virtual corporate event and performed via Zoom during their weekly online office meetup. The client was based in South Africa and the mariachi musicians performed from the comfort of their own home in London. The client was delighted and said afterwards: "That was FANTASTIC! Thank you for a wonderful, high energy performance. Everybody really loved it!". Another of our mariachi bands recently performed for a Mexican-themed Day of the Dead online company party, dressed in traditional clothing.
One of the big advantages of hiring a band for an online event is that you can book the world's best bands and musicians, no matter where your event is or where the musicians are based.
For bigger events, we have a number of excellent full bands, whose production value and professionalism are second to none. This is a fantastic opportunity to hire bands that are normally booked for months, if not years in advance. With no need to pay for travel expenses or accommodation, it usually ends up being much cheaper to hire a large band for an online event.
FAQ: How much does it cost to hire a musician or band for a Zoom party or virtual event?
Prices start at around £150 for a solo musician or singer to perform for 30 minutes on a Zoom call. The cost will increase depending on the number of musicians you hire, as well as the length of time they perform for. For a band, the average price tends to be between £800 - £1,300 for a 3-piece band for around 30-45 minutes of live music. If you're hiring a band to live stream from a studio with specialist audio, video and lighting technology, the prices will be much higher, e.g. around £2,500 for a 4-piece band and £3,000 for a 5-piece band.
And no more looking into stranger’s living rooms and bedrooms! Many of our bands have spaces and equipment available to offer you a professional look and sound, giving you that authentic performance feel from the comfort of your own home or office.
These are challenging times for all, and live music can be a way to really bring us together, inspiring hope and positivity for the future. Hiring some musical entertainment for your online event, will help transform it and turn it into a real (virtual) party.
An innovative option that one of our bands (The London Roaming Band) is currently offering is a live online virtual music quiz.
Read more about the Virtual Live Music Quiz here.
Similar to a pub quiz format, the band or singer performs snippets of songs live and ask questions, whilst participants at home (or in the office) work as a team to answer the questions. Perfect for virtual team building activities with your remote colleagues during a conference call, for the break-out room at a virtual conference, a social mixer or birthday party with friends and family. Our musicians keep the chat window open and are ready to respond to live requests or questions from participants.
But how do I know these new online services will be any good?
Our online virtual music quiz was recently booked for a 40th virtual birthday party – and proved a great success! You can read the client's review following the event here: "I want to say a big thank you for yesterday! You ran an absolutely perfect birthday call. Thank you for doing such an excellent job of creating a fun, dynamic atmosphere. My guests haven’t stopped complimenting me on the event and that is all down to you. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. I think the format works really well and I am glad you have discovered it. Will happily recommend your service and FixTheMusic to family and friends."
Our bands and singers can tailor their performances to your company's brand, with bespoke lyrics and scripted "shout outs" to celebrate particular occasions or congratulate colleagues, as well as provide live music "stings" (customised live band walk-on music for gala awards presentations/speeches).
As well as virtual event bands and musicians, we can also supply professional virtual magicians for hire, event hosts and compères, beatbox bands and beatboxers, caricaturists, dancers, tribute acts, celebrity speakers, break-dancers, Broadway tribute singers for virtual events – and any other type of virtual entertainer or activities you can think of – perfect for remote team-building activities.
One especially exciting option is to hire a virtual ceilidh band. With a small ceilidh band and live caller streaming the steps and instructions, your event participants can dance along at home, bringing a unique Scottish flavour to any online event.
But who is our most popular band for virtual events?
Wandering Three are currently our most booked band for virtual events, providing three-part harmonies, two acoustic guitarists and a violinist for online parties across the world. They recently received this review after performing for a virtual corporate event: "Ollie, That was absolutely fantastic! The staff all thought you were amazing and I have had loads of phenomenal feedback! It worked 400 times better than I imagined it would! We would be so keen to have you back when we can do a real-life staff event next year...I've had so many requests for you to return in the flesh!".
Check out some of our best virtual-friendly bands and acts below, and get your online event’s music fixed with the finest virtual entertainment the UK has to offer...
View more videos and read verified reviews of NOMAD Lite ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Wandering Three ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of The Nauticals Acoustic Duo ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Thomas Philip ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Sonora Mariachi Band ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Luna Showband ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Starboard ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Roaming Beats ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of The Inside Groove ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of The City Roamers ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of The London Roaming Band ➡️
View more videos and read verified reviews of Kate Sings ➡️
In addition to the live bands, musicians and singers that we work with, an increasingly popular option is to hire a motivational speaker, celebrity, business leader or industry expert for your online award ceremony or conference, or office happy hour. They can be the perfect form of Zoom entertainment for hire or virtual entertainment for your corporate event or Zoom party.
A popular request in recent weeks has also been to hire a virtual karaoke band, perfect for your event participants to singalong at home!
Most of our bands booked to live-stream for an online virtual event will provide the following: a full, managed livestream service, moving cameras with a mix of camera angles, professional direct audio (not from a phone/camera microphone), studio/venue hire (this could be at beach bar or industrial warehouse space), lighting and between 1 hour to 90 minutes of live performance.
Top tips for hiring a band or musician for a virtual online event
We're frequently asked which online platform is better for online performances: Zoom or Google Meet. In our experience, Zoom tends to be the better choice, as the sound quality is superior and it's easier for anyone to join a Zoom call, whereas Google Meet requires a user to have a Google account.
Once the musicians' performance has started, the host should mute every other participant on the call, otherwise the music can be drowned out by others talking and other background noises.
We also usually recommend the band and musicians test the technology in advance of the virtual event with the host, usually an hour or two before the live performance itself.
Some of our bands and singers have also live-streamed their performances via YouTube at the same time – although the viewers wouldn't be able to participate on the other platform, it can be a great way to allow more people to watch online.
Other fun team-building options involving live musicians include a musical quiz (e.g. guessing the song after only hearing a short clip), write a Christmas carol or rap workshop, musical "Zoombombing", bespoke musical videos and virtual performances.
So, if you’re looking to hire some fantastic live entertainment for your company's online event or other virtual corporate event ideas / virtual event entertainment ideas, look no further and get in touch today!
— Zazie works on everything from copywriting and marketing to creating profiles for our outstanding bands and musicians.
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