The 2012 Wedding season is well under way here in beautiful
northern Michigan and we here at Pluister Entertainment, Inc. have been blessed
and honored to serve some terrific families.
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| Sam Kantola and Tom Pluister |
First of all, I’ve been training a new apprentice this year
to prepare him to serve couples and their families the way I’ve learned. Sam
Kantola is his name and He’s turning out to be a terrific asset to us. Sam has
the enthusiasm, love for music and public speaking skills that I would look for
in a Disc Jockey if I were hiring one for our family. He has quickly learned
the technology and sound reinforcement aspects of our business and has had some
superb learning experiences at some of the best weddings we’ve ever done
already this season.
We started our Wedding Season this year in the Rose Garden
conservatory at Stafford’s historic Perry Hotel in Petoskey. We set up a sound
system for the Wedding Ceremony with microphones for the Pastor, Readers and
Musicians. Everything looked and sounded beautiful, with the Bride and Grooms
vows heard by over 130 guests. As the guests went around the corner for a group
photograph, we reconfigured our sound system for a grand entrance, dinner
music, toasts, prayer and dancing. When it was time to introduce the wedding
party, I had a cool looped mash-up of the entrance song under my announcements
and the guests went wild. On this particular evening we knew we had many guests
who had been married a long time, so we played an Anniversary dance. The
Anniversary dance starts with all the married couples on the dance floor to the
tune of “Let’s stay Together” by Al Green. I ask them to step to the side of
the dance floor by the number of years they’ve been wed, starting with one year
or less (the Bride and Groom stay on the dance floor). To make a long story
short, we were honored to find two couples who had been married for 54 years
each! It was a very special moment
for everyone in attendance. The other shining moments were the Toasts to the
Bride. I have been sharing a great book with all of my clients called Wedding
Toasts made Easy and am very happy to say that the Matron of Honor and Best
Man’s toasts were outstanding tributes to Bride and Groom.
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| Anniversary Dance at the Perry Hotel in Petoskey |
The next couple Sam and I served held their Ceremony and
Reception at Stafford’s Bay View Inn. The weather was cold and gale force winds
drove rain across Little Traverse Bay changing plans for an outdoor garden
Wedding. Instead we held their informal Ceremony in the Howard Room. We had a
break for Cocktail hour as the couple had hired members of Petoskey’s famous
Steel Drum Band to play in the Sun Room. They provided a great atmosphere with
Caribbean rhythms that led guests nicely to my dinner music selections. The
groom had requested a few local artists be played through dinner. My new role
as a radio host on BlissFest Radio came in handy because we play a lot of local
artists like Michelle Chenard, Claudia Schmidt and Seth and May. The Bride had
specifically asked me to create some mash-ups for dancing of some INXS, Hall
and Oats and Daft Punk. Sam and I spent about 20 hours in my studio mapping cue
points and rehearsing these mash-ups. When it came time to perform them live,
it was stellar! It was nothing like rehearsal – just off the cuff and inspired.
Practice and preparation are the keys to a good performance.
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| Cocktail hour with members of the Petoskey Steel Drum Band |
The next Wedding we did was at Petoskey’s newly re-furbished
Knight of Columbus managed by the skilled and experienced staff of Sweetwater
Catering. We had a sound system outside the building on the patio for guests to
enjoy cocktail music. Sam used a microphone outside when it was time to get
guests inside for dinner. the Mother of the Bride made an itinerary that we
followed for an entrance, formal dances and another anniversary dance with many
couples over 45 years. The diversity of music we played was a good lesson for
Sam. He also got some great time beat matching and mixing. Frank Sinatra to
Black Eyed Peas? In Sam’s own words: “go big or go home, sir!” Everyone circled
around the Bride and Groom during their last dance and sent them to Hawaii with
love!
Just recently we were back the Perry Hotel for a huge,
beautiful Wedding and Reception in the Rose Garden. The Professionals at the
Perry are friends of ours and we really enjoy working there. The Entrance was a
mash-up again and Sam watched me perform it live and announce at the same time. Any time that we provide Ceremony sound
services we attend the Rehearsal to be certain that we have the timing and
music and microphone details. At this particular rehearsal, I was sitting with
the Bride when her sister, and Matron of Honor, came to us and asked if I could
add a slow dance after the Bride and Groom’s first dance for the wedding party.
I agreed and the Bride excused herself to the Pastor for rehearsal. A few minutes later the Matron of Honor
whispers in my ear that she has a little surprise that she’d like to email me.
She said the Groom knew what was going on, but not her sister. Let me say – I
don’t like to surprise a Bride with anything on wedding day, so I was a little
reluctant. After looking at her email and thinking again that the Groom knew
and was a part of it, I followed the video link. The entire wedding party and
the groom were set up to pull a Flash Mob to “You Shook me All Night Long” from
AC/DC. I went to work on the cue points needed to edit the song on the fly. On
Wedding day I assured the Matron of Honor that I was ready. After the couple’s
first dance, I looped the opening of “Just the Way you Are” by Bruno Mars and
welcomed the wedding attendants to the dance floor. Once everyone was in place,
I brought the ‘turntable’ to a halt and hit AC/DC. The Groom started their
flash mob with a great air guitar tribute to his Bride! The look of surprise
and joy on her face was precious. I hit the cue point right on the money and our
Groom once again took center stage with a sliding plea to his Lady! Almost
everyone in attendance came to the dance floor and joined in. It was a
spectacular musical memory that will not be forgotten anytime soon by anyone
who witnessed it!
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| A surprise Flash Mob |
Anyway – I can’t just sit around here and write all day. I
think that I’ll tell a little about my early experiences this year with
BlissFest Radio in my next blog.
Cheers until then…
Tom Pluister
