|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
||||||
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|||
 |
|||
|
How long have you been performing? I began my radio career in ’71 while still in college. When you were a kid, you may have heard me on WCOD (1972-77). I was a kid then, too. The real "boot camp" for performing is the nightclub. My 13 years in the clubs included being the House DJ at Rascals (1976-78), The Mill Hill Club (1978-82), The Improper Bostonian (1983) and Summersalts (1984-89). By 1989, I was also performing at dozens of weddings each year and decided to retire from nightclubs. Now I get to enjoy people on their best behavior!
What’s your sound system? All this is neatly packed into a custom-built, black, two-foot case. No lettering or advertising appears on it. No unsightly wires either. The only external attachments are the cables to two 180-watt, 15-inch JBL EON speakers (the one shown here is not actual size), mounted on tripods by the dance floor.
What is "Time Capsule"? My company (Time Capsule, Inc.) produces a radio series — one-minute "Guess-the-month-and-year" quizzes that have been syndicated on more than 450 stations since 1977. You can visit our website and hear one for yourself. As you might expect, the Time Capsule studio has a pretty hefty music library. We also create websites (like this one), radio ads and a wide range of audio, video and graphics projects. It’s a fun place to work!
What’s in your library? Every song that reached #20 or higher on the charts is here. And many, many more that you’d know in an instant. Plus soundtracks, show tunes, country music, reggae, big band, jazz. That’s over 15,000 titles. The 1,000 CDs that come with me to every performance include songs in all formats all the way back to 1904! You can view, search and print them from the Music Page of this site.
Do you take requests? Not only do I take them. I encourage them. Here’s why... With over 15,000 songs on hand, we can take your party in almost any direction. The key is knowing what you and your guests want. I’m no mind-reader, but I’m a very good listener. The fun of working in requests is building little "sets" based on them. That’s where the 30 years’ experience comes in. Not being chained to "what worked last week" gives me the opportunity to delight folks with a song that’s special to them. How did I know it was special? I didn’t... until they told me.
Do you take breaks? No. There’ll be music from the moment the first guest walks in until the party ends. Breaks are for bands, not for DJs. And while the dinner music is playing, I like to visit each table and gather requests and dedications from your guests. It breaks the ice, makes them feel less shy about coming up later, and I enjoy it.
You’re not going to blast the music during dinner? I’ve never understood why some DJs do this. The point of background music is to be in the background, so your guests can converse without shouting! There’s a time to add energy and excitement. And it's later.
What kind of music do you play as background? A pretty wide variety of easy-on-the-ears artists — Frank Sinatra, James Taylor, Enya, Sting, Duke Ellington, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Marley, Van Morrison, Anita Baker, Andrea Bocelli, Michael Buble, Motown ballads, show tunes — plus any personal favorites you really want to hear that might not be particularly danceable. We want your guests to get a feel for all the variety that’s available later, when the dancing begins. The key is to avoid "wasting" a song that folks would really enjoy dancing to. For instance, playing a terrific jitterbug tune like "In The Mood" or a great slow-dance song like "Wonderful Tonight" while your guests are munching salad is silly. But hearing "A String Of Pearls" or the unplugged version of "Layla" may get them thinking, "Hmmm. He's got Glenn Miller and Eric Clapton…" It lets them know the colors we can paint with.
You mentioned Glenn Miller. Any other Big Band music? Time-Life produced a wonderful series of CDs called "Your Hit Parade" — a CD for each year from 1940 to 1959, with 24 songs on each. I’ve got the complete set, which means you can choose from hundreds of great songs from the Forties and Fifties (want to hear the original "As Time Goes By" from Casablanca?). They’re all alphabetized by artist and title in my request notebook, which sits right up front for your guests to flip through. Incidentally, my library includes many other CDs that have some spectacular material all the way back to 1904. (Anyone for "K-K-K-Katie"? It was a huge hit back in the summer of 1918. Ask your grandma…).
How many songs should I select? Well, you’ll need a song for your first dance, one for cutting the cake (don’t worry, I have alternatives to "The Bride Cuts The Cake"), the bride-and-dad dance, the groom-and-mom dance, the Bridal Party dance, and a song for your last dance. You can dedicate songs to guests who are celebrating anniversaries, engagements, birthdays, etc. And you can submit a list of songs you just happen to like — as well as a list of those songs you don’t like. So if you cringe at the thought of "The Chicken Dance" at your reception, simply put it on the Banned List! Even with non-stop music, only 18-20 songs can be crammed into an hour. And since the cocktail hour, dinner and the special dances consume more than half of a typical five-hour reception, you’re looking at a total of about 45 or 50 songs for the party itself. So don’t assign yourself the task of selecting every song. Give the party a little room to breathe, and let your guests get some requests in, too.
My parents are uncomfortable with the thought of a DJ! Perhaps they once saw (in a movie or on TV) a shaggy dude wearing ripped jeans, earrings and an attitude, "scratching" rap music. Maybe they actually endured an amateur who disdained requests and inflicted Axl Rose during dinner at maximum volume. We all make generalizations. One of the most rewarding moments for me happens at the end of receptions, when folks over 50 come up and tell me they never realized how enjoyable a party could be with a DJ (and how nice it was that I didn’t blast the music during dinner…). The "conversion" of parents and relatives is a common observation in the thank-you notes I get from couples. I only hope their next DJ experience isn’t some metal-head with cheap speakers!
What do you wear? Tuxedos are for the groom and the guys in the wedding party. Sport coats and slacks are for guests (the male ones, anyway). You’ll see me in a classy suit.
Do you have a video? I’m sure I’ve appeared in hundreds of wedding videos, but I don’t use them for promotion. Every party is — or should be — unique. Some feature "alternative" music. Or country music. Or disco from the Seventies. And the best moments of each reflect the personality of the guests, the spirit of the moment, and the dreams of the couple. Imagine 250 guests at the posh Willowbend Country Club breaking into a choreographed routine of the Texas A&M fight song. Or a fireworks display on the beach at Popponessett, accompanied by "When You Wish Upon A Star" — terrific moments for those families and their guests, but not the kind of thing you’d ever find in a wedding video. If you do get a wedding video from a DJ, know what you’ll see? Yup — all the ingredients from your basic assembly-line reception: an introduction sequence, a First Dance, frenzied guests doing the Electric Slide or "Shout!" or "YMCA". Oh, and you’ll also see the biggest day of two people’s lives being packaged to promote someone's DJ career. Bad form.
Can we come see you perform? I wouldn’t feel right inviting strangers to use your wedding as a shopping opportunity. And that’s a courtesy I extend to all the couples who book me. Of course, you’re certainly welcome to stop by my studio, meet with me, check out my music list, my sound system, and make sure I don’t have three heads! And please ask around about me. One of the nice things about performing here for 30 years is that most of the Cape Cod function managers, caterers, photographers and videographers have seen me in action and can give you an unbiased report. They see all the DJs, and they’ll tell you who’s good (and who isn’t).
What do you sound like? For years I did the radio commercials for Puritan Clothing and the Mill Hill Club. And you can hear a real good approximation of my voice if you call me (1-800-822-7785) after 9am.
What are your rates? Please call me with your specific date and the hours you want me, and I’ll be happy to quote you the exact price.
How do I book you? First, compare your wedding day with my upcoming bookings. If the day is available, call me toll-free at 1-800-822-7785 (9am-9pm) and let me know the specifics. I’ll quote you a price and send out a Performance Agreement right away. Thanks to the magic of e-mail, you can have it as a PDF file within minutes. I only book 12 months in advance, so if your big day will be June 15, 2010, please call on or after June 1, 2009 — and I’ll be happy to send you a Performance Agreement then. Relax... no one else will be able to book me way in advance either! If you decide you want me to play at your reception, just sign the form and return it with your deposit. If no one else has booked me in the meantime, I’ll accept your deposit and send you a signed copy of our agreement. And yes, I can accept credit cards.
Then what? We’ll get together for a music meeting — usually in the last month before your wedding — to go over the sequence of events, the announcements, the music, and the style you’re most comfortable with (some folks prefer formality; some don’t). You can browse my music library and decide on the special songs by actually hearing them. These meetings take about an hour and are one of the more fun pre-wedding "assignments" you’ll have. Even future grooms come to this one with a minimum of arm-twisting. And now you can use the Internet to have this music meeting right on your computer! This “e-meeting” is especially useful if you live off-Cape and won’t be arriving here until right before your wedding.
How do I know you’ll be the DJ who shows up? My name is right on the contract, so you won’t be getting any trainees or underlings. And what if I get sick or hurt? From time to time, like everyone else, I do. But in all my years of performing, I’ve yet to be derailed by an injury or illness (move over, Cal Ripken...). The show has always gone on. No one is indestructible*. But my track record has proven to be mighty solid. *Should a calamity befall me, my company would refund your deposit
What if you don’t have some of the songs I really like? Fortunately, my system can’t tell the difference between my CDs and yours. So if you’ve got songs on CD, use little Post-it notes to specify the track numbers you like. Then just put someone in the wedding party in charge of delivering your music to me, and picking it up later. I think it’s great when you personalize your reception with your own style. And yes, I can plug your iPod into my system. How cool is that? If you don’t have the songs either, we can try to track down the ones that are still in print. And if you’ve got music or audio treasures on cassette that you’d like to transfer to CD for the event — or any elaborate production numbers you’d like to create — our Time Capsule studio can work its wizardry for you... at a discount rate.
Our wedding and reception are at the same place.
and Recessional: Would you like the audio from your ceremony recorded? Great news! We can place my compact Zoom H2 digital recorder close enough to capture every vow in brilliant stereo (any coughing guests and crying babies would be more distant). Back at the studio, we can turn that audio into a CD and provide all the copies you’d like!
Besides weddings, what other functions can you do? The depth of my library is a big hit at 25th and 50th Anniversaries and reunions. My season occasionally ends on New Year’s Eve with a special show at Thirwood Place — probably the only audience that reacts to songs from the ’20s and ’30s by saying, "C’mon, son, play something old! |
|||
|
|||
|
||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The centerpiece is the magnificent DN-D4500 CD player (created by Denon in 2005 with 
state-of-the-art capablilities). Besides the mixing console and the EV-457A microphone I use, there’s a cordless Shure UHF mic for toasts.
