When you book a DJ for a company holiday party in Calgary, plan the night in four parts: a cocktail hour, dinner, speeches or awards, then dancing. Ask for low music while people talk and eat, and a full dance floor after the last award. Settle the venue’s sound and the end time early.<\/p>\n
Then send us your date, venue and guest count to compare options with prices from DJs, and we’ll check your date with the one you pick. Below, you’ll find when a DJ is worth it, what to ask the venue, what changes the price and what to get in writing.<\/p>\n
Choose a DJ if your party has dinner, speeches and dancing for a large group. A DJ can keep the music low while people mingle, pass the microphone over at the right moment, and change course when the dance floor starts to empty. A playlist can’t see that dinner’s running late.<\/p>\n
Choose a playlist if it’s a short drinks hour after work, with no speeches and no dancing. It costs less, but someone from your team has to run it all night, watch the volume and step in when a song goes wrong.<\/p>\n
Choose a band if live music through dinner matters more to you than a long dance set: see bands for hire in Calgary<\/a>. Some parties book a band for dinner and a DJ for the dancing. That works, but it’s two bookings to plan around one room and one end time. For the cocktail hour, a magician who walks between guests can get teams talking before they sit down: see magicians in Calgary<\/a>.<\/p>\n A large company party often runs in the same order, at a hotel ballroom, a hall or a venue buyout. Share yours with the DJ and the venue, and count every part in the hours you book.<\/p>\n Ask the DJ what they’d play in each part, and how loud. Ask which song they’d open the dance floor with, and whether most of your guests will know it.<\/p>\n Once the awards are over, ask the DJ to move straight to dancing while the room’s still together. A long gap after the speeches gives guests time to find their coats.<\/p>\n A hotel or a large venue may have its own AV team and sound system. Ask the venue what’s included, who runs it on the night, and whether an outside DJ can connect to it. Ask the DJ whether they’d use the venue’s system or bring their own, and give each of them the other’s contact details.<\/p>\n Choose the venue’s system if it covers the whole room and someone from the AV team stays all night. That’s one less thing to carry in and set up. Choose the DJ’s own sound if the venue’s system is meant for speeches only, or nobody from the venue will be there after dinner. If the venue has no sound or lighting, the DJ will need to bring them, and that changes the price.<\/p>\n Ask for a sound check with the microphone before guests arrive, so it works when the first speaker stands up. Ask the DJ what they’d do if a speaker or a cable fails during the party.<\/p>\n Ask the venue for a floor plan. Place the DJ beside the dance floor, and keep the speakers pointed away from the tables where people want to talk. Ask where the nearest power outlet is, so no cable has to cross a walkway.<\/p>\n Tell the DJ where they’ll set up, how they load in and when the room opens to them. A December party in Calgary can mean snow and ice at the loading door. Ask the venue where the DJ can stop to unload, how close the stop is to the room, and where they can park afterwards.<\/p>\n If the party’s at a venue outside the city, give the full address in your request, since travel can change the price.<\/p>\n A company party brings together every team and age, often with partners. Ask the DJ how they’d mix songs from different decades, and tell them a few songs or styles your team likes.<\/p>\n Send a do-not-play list, and ask for clean edits of songs with explicit lyrics. Ask a colleague from another team to read the list too, so it covers songs that could upset someone at work, not only the ones you dislike.<\/p>\n Decide how much holiday music you’d like. Some teams want a festive night from start to finish. Others want a few holiday songs while guests arrive, then the usual dance songs. Not everyone celebrates the same holidays, so keep the holiday songs to the parts of the night where they fit best.<\/p>\n Send a short must-play list with your booking details. A handful of songs is enough, so the DJ still has room to follow the crowd.<\/p>\n Then decide on requests. Choose open requests if your team likes to shape the night and you trust the DJ to say no politely. Choose no requests if you’d rather the DJ keeps control of the flow, or if your do-not-play list is long. Either way, tell the DJ before the night, and ask how they’d handle a request that’s on your list or doesn’t suit the room.<\/p>\n Send the DJ a timeline before the party: when guests arrive, when dinner is served, when the speeches and awards start, and when the music has to stop. Tell them who’s speaking, and who needs a microphone.<\/p>\n Decide whether you’d like the DJ to act as MC. Some hosts want the DJ to call people to dinner and introduce each speaker. Others would rather a colleague hosts, and the DJ stays on the music. Say which suits you in your request, so it’s settled before you book.<\/p>\n For awards, send the names ahead, spelled the way they’re said. Ask whether the DJ can play a short song as each winner walks up.<\/p>\n Name one person from your team as the DJ’s contact for the night, and share their phone number. When the schedule moves, that’s the person who tells the DJ, so the DJ isn’t taking cues from five people at once.<\/p>\n A hotel or hall often sets a time the room has to be clear. Ask the venue for two times: when the music has to stop, and when everyone, the DJ included, has to be out. Tell the DJ both, so the last song and the pack-up fit inside them.<\/p>\n Ask the DJ how long they need to pack up, and count it when you plan the end of the night. If the party could run late, ask the venue whether the room can stay open longer. Ask the DJ how extra time works before the night, not at midnight.<\/p>\n We don’t publish a range for Calgary DJs yet; you’ll see a price with each option we send. These are the things that change it:<\/p>\n If your team’s flexible on the date, ask for prices on a weeknight as well as a Saturday.<\/p>\n Before you pay, ask for these in writing:<\/p>\n If something’s missing, ask about it before you book.<\/p>\n AGNT is a booking company. You send us your date, venue and guest count, and we send you options with prices from DJs in Calgary. You pick one, we check your date with them, and it’s booked once you’ve paid. If your first pick isn’t available, we’ll tell you, suggest a similar DJ, and check your date with them.<\/p>\n Some of the Calgary DJs you can book through AGNT are so&so<\/a>, Mikey Da Roza<\/a> and AABB<\/a>. You can see more on DJs for hire in Calgary<\/a>.<\/p>\n Start once your date, venue and guest count are set. We don’t hold reliable numbers on how far ahead Calgary teams book for the holiday season, so we won’t give you one. Your date’s checked with the DJ you pick, so choosing sooner means knowing sooner.<\/p>\n A playlist suits a short drinks hour with no speeches. Choose a DJ if you have dinner, speeches and dancing, since someone has to manage the volume and the microphone all night.<\/p>\n Ask each DJ, and say how much hosting you’d like: calling people to dinner and introducing speakers, or running the whole evening. Put it in your request, and get it in writing.<\/p>\n Send a short must-play list and a do-not-play list with your booking details, and ask the DJ for clean edits of songs with explicit lyrics.<\/p>\n Decide before the night, and tell the DJ. Ask how they’ll handle a request that’s on your do-not-play list or doesn’t suit the room.<\/p>\n Ask the DJ what backup they bring, and ask the venue whether someone from its AV team will be on site. A sound check before guests arrive leaves time to fix a problem.<\/p>\n Check with the venue what it needs from outside vendors. If it asks for proof of insurance, ask the DJ whether they can send it before the night.<\/p>\n We wrote this from what people ask when they book a DJ for a large company party: the order of the night, the sound, the dance floor, the music and the end time. We also read five guides on hiring a DJ for a work party, and added what they leave out for a Calgary party. It doesn’t list prices, because we don’t publish a range for Calgary DJs yet. You’ll see prices with the options we send.<\/p>\n Tell us your date, venue and guest count, and we’ll send you Calgary DJs with prices, then check your date with the one you pick: book a DJ in Calgary<\/a><\/p>\nHow should the music change through the night?<\/h2>\n
\n
Will the DJ use the venue’s sound, or bring their own?<\/h2>\n
Where should the DJ set up?<\/h2>\n
What music suits a mixed-age company crowd?<\/h2>\n
How should requests and must-play songs work?<\/h2>\n
Who runs the speeches and awards?<\/h2>\n
When does the music have to stop?<\/h2>\n
What changes the price of a DJ in Calgary?<\/h2>\n
\n
What should you get in writing?<\/h2>\n
\n
Questions to ask before you book<\/h2>\n
\n
How booking works with AGNT<\/h2>\n
Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n
How far ahead should we book a DJ for a company holiday party?<\/h3>\n
Do we need a DJ, or will a playlist do?<\/h3>\n
Can the DJ also be the MC?<\/h3>\n
Can we send our own songs and a do-not-play list?<\/h3>\n
How should guest requests work?<\/h3>\n
What if something goes wrong with the sound on the night?<\/h3>\n
Does the DJ need insurance for the venue?<\/h3>\n
How we put this together<\/h2>\n
Your next step<\/h2>\n