A holiday dinner in a private room at a restaurant or hotel in Vancouver is a seated, talking kind of evening. A pianist, a guitarist or a jazz duo can add to it without taking over. Plan the venue, the songs and the volume, then send us your date, venue and guest count, and you can compare options with prices for musicians who are available that night.
Ask the venue first
Before you book, ask the restaurant or hotel:
- whether outside musicians are allowed in your room;
- whether there’s a piano, and whether it’s tuned;
- where the musician can set up, and where the nearest power is;
- whether there’s a time the music has to stop.
Seasonal songs, or not
Tell the musician whether you’d like holiday songs, a mix, or no seasonal music at all, and the feel you want, such as jazz or acoustic covers.
A quiet volume
Ask the musician how they keep the volume low enough for guests to talk across the table, and where they’d set up so the music reaches the room without being loud near any table.
The toast and the end time
Tell the musician when the toast or any speeches happen, so they can stop. Ask how long they play at a time, and agree an end time that fits the venue’s.
Questions to ask before you book
- Can you play holiday songs, or a mix, or none?
- Do you need a piano, or do you bring your own instrument and sound?
- Where would you set up, and what do you need from the venue?
- How do you keep the volume right for a seated dinner?
- Can you stop for the toast?
- How long do you play at a time, and when do you finish?
- When will you arrive, and what will you wear?
What changes the price
The price depends on how many hours you book, a second musician, the holiday-season date, and travel outside Metro Vancouver.
How booking works with AGNT
AGNT is a booking company. You send us your date, venue and guest count, and we check which musicians in Vancouver are available that night. We send you options with prices. You pick one, and it’s booked once the deposit is paid. If your first pick isn’t available, we’ll tell you and suggest a similar act who is.
Some of the Vancouver musicians you can book through AGNT are Jazz Piano Player for Private Events, Bryan Binnema and Sandro Camerin. You can see more on musicians for hire in Vancouver.
How we put this together
We wrote this from what people ask when they book live music for a holiday dinner: the venue, the songs, the volume and the timing. It doesn’t list prices, because they depend on your date, how long you book and the musician you choose. You’ll see prices with the options we send.
Your next step
Tell us your date, venue and guest count, and we’ll send you Vancouver musicians who are available that night, with prices: book a musician in Vancouver
Featured photo by Dragon White Munthe on Unsplash
