"Live music." That common saying may contain some truth, but these days the word "live" is having less and less to do with music. For many people, a dj is their form of live music. Despite what dj's would like to have you believe, musicians make excellent entertainment.

In the first place, people enjoy human performance. Many musicians like great athletes are multi-talented. They will croon on the tenor saxophone right to your soul, then turn around and chunk out a funky rhythm on a Fender Stratocaster. Can a dj play a turntable behind his head or with his teeth? Professional musicians love to sing and groove on just about any style of music from a Frank Sinatra to Outkast. They especially enjoy playing when the audience is responding to their performance.

In the second place, musicians are students of the arts. Musicians do not merely "push buttons." They've had years of practice in their homes, and they do their thing on stage. Unlike dj's musicians do not try to sing over or add other loud or strange noises to program music. Once a song starts it flows to the end and in the unfortunate event of a power shortage musicians can continue to entertain acoustically until power is restored. Even non-professional musicians usually understand "the show must go on" concept.

Lastly, one of the most attractive features of bands as entertainment is the affinity between them and their audience. Watching a great drummer is never boring because they're constantly moving...feeling. An animated solo violinist playing an old wooden Stradivarius violin has a much greater chance of reaching into your soul and stirring your emotions than a dj with an array of magnetic speakers and digital amplifiers no matter how great his system sounds. It's an apple trying to be an orange. It's the difference between human blood and electricity.

Contrary to popular opinion, bands can be affordable. Just like with a dj, finding a band well in advance and securing them with a low down payment, the price can be negotiated to avoid costly or inadequate entertainment. Bands will even throw in a free cocktail hour or an extra half hour at the end to secure a date! Many bands are now offering "dj time." This is when the musician hat comes off and the dj hat is put on to play the Techno, House, Hip-Hop, etc...Genres of today. People who have small parties should appreciate these characteristics of bands. However, many people who have large parties opt to have bands because they love the musician personality. In many ways, musicians are the ideal entertainers.

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