People still are using the traditional bridal song too, but it is just not necessary anymore for those who want to be original or walk down the aisle to a song that best expresses how they feel about their nuptials.

When it comes to the music for your wedding ceremony and the reception, it is important that you consider your budget above all things. Naturally, you will want to have all of the music that you love available including the music that you want for your first dance.

Hiring a DJ can be the best way to go, but it is not the only way to go. If you must hire a DJ, there are a few ways that you can save money on it.

Saving on a DJ

For starters, you can look to hire an amateur DJ who is just starting out. They are eager for the work and will often cut you a good deal. You can find good amateur DJ’s at local school dances and sometimes just by asking local area high school and college kids about DJ’s that they might know.
Young DJ’s who are just starting out are also using modern technology like portable computers with downloaded music and this means that they can almost always get just about any song that you might want.

Young DJ’s are also more willing to follow your precise instructions for what you want to hear and will allow you to have full control of what they do. Many amateur DJs will also make you custom CDs if you ask them and you can give them to the bridal party as gifts.

To get the best prices from the amateurs, you can let them audition to make sure that they can play your wedding song and then you can let them bid their prices. You simply choose the best of them who has the best price.

Saving on a band

Many couples would prefer to use a live band at their wedding and reception. Live bands offer a special tone to the ceremony and it adds some elegance.

When you want to save money on a band, you can often find great deals when you look to local high school and college bands to get much cheaper prices. You can use the school bands to play music at the ceremony and hire a DJ for the reception.

You can also look to any friends or family members who play musical instruments to help you out. Just make sure that the band that you do hire knows how to play the song or music that you are hoping to have at your wedding.

Instruments like guitar, Spanish guitar, saxophone, and piano are always great for weddings and you can often find local musical students who will be willing to play a wedding for small fees.

Extra Money Saving Tips

When it comes to the music that you want to hear at your wedding, there are some extra tips that you can use to help and make it just a little bit more affordable. Some of these tips are as follows:

• Hold auditions with young people who are trying to get some experience and let them come to you.
• Place an ad in the paper or penny saver that you are looking for wedding bands or DJ’s and let them bid for the jobs. This will have the different players competing for your wedding which will have them all trying to outbid each other for the chance for exposure. Let them audition and tell them that you are taking quotes on fees so that they all know what is going to happen.
• Use pre-recorded live music tapings at your wedding so that you will get he live music sound but without paying the extra money.
• Use a stereo at your reception that hosts various different mixed CD’s and plays them all automatically. Many stereos these days will play through dozens of Cd’s in a row so that the music lasts for hours. This can cost you no more than the price of the CD’s. You can also use CDs that you burned yourself from the computer so that you can get all of your favorite music
• A nice decoration for a reception is to make a collage of pictures of the bride and groom and their families.

Here are the top 10 tips that you should know in order to lower the cost of your wedding decorations.

1. Decide on the essential items that you must have first and then worry about the extras.
2. Hand make the centerpieces yourself using items priced toward your budget.
3. Using artificial flowers is cheaper than fresh flowers unless you pick them yourself from a field.
4. Skip the extra wedding favors and focus more attention on decoration detail.
5. Never go over your budget because you set it up for a reason
6. For smaller items like candles, candle holders, small laces etc. visit your nearby dollar store.
7. Never underestimate the elegance of basic décor. Sometimes minimal is best.
8. Some very versatile items that can make a beautiful decorations include: clay pots, plastic bowls/vases, faux flowers, pearls, balloons, pillar candles, rhinestones, and empty wine bottles.
9. Tissue paper roses and flowers give off a beautiful look to any decorating style and they are quick and easy to make.
10. A word to wise is that your decorations should not even amount to half of the money that is spent on the reception.