Key Info

Based: London

Guide Price: £529

Genre: Wedding Ceremony & Drinks Reception Music

Line-Up: duo (1 vocal / keys, bass / upright bass / sax + backing tracks)

Lead Vocals: Female vocals

About

Wedding Ceremony & Drinks Reception Music London - The Variation

The Variation is a duo of extremely well-trained and talented musicians bringing the best pop, soul, lounge and jazz music to stages and dance floors globally. The Variation is composed of Emily on vocals and piano and Jaz on electric bass, saxophone, double bass and backing tracks. Emily’s has been playing the piano and singing since the age of 7, and her vocal tones are reminiscent of the likes of Nora Jones. The Variation are incredibly versatile, suiting both a lounge environment and late night party setting, they like to use backing tracks for the more upbeat songs to create a fuller sound, which helps get people on the dance-floor and keep them there. Emily and Jaz’s chemistry, synchronicity, and incredibly professional and friendly personalities will win you and all of your guests round from the first song.

Emily, who has studied at Purcell School for Young Musicians, the Royal College of Music and the Trinity Laban Conservatoire, has performed globally, including a very high-level dinner in Sri Lanka for HRH Prince Charles, Camilla and 54 Heads of Government. Jaz, likewise started early immersing himself, in, you guessed it, jazz in the London music scene. He also attended Purcell School for Young Musicians, and studied jazz in the Trinity Laban Conservatoire. They are extremely well-trained musicians and have a wealth of experience gigging across London and the UK in very successful and established function bands. Collectively Emily and Jaz have performed at Hampton Court, the Royal Festival Hall, St Albans Abbey, Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral, Ronnie Scott’s, Oliver’s Jazz Bar, Pizza Express Jazz Club, The Duke, The Crown, and The Troy Bar; toured the UK and Sri Lanka; and have been taught by musicians and organisations such as the Julian Joseph Jazz Academy, Julian Crampton (Incognito), Laurence Cottle, Dave Swift (Jools Holland), The Royal Academy Of Music, Gareth Lockrane The National Youth Jazz Orchestra, Berklee College of Music and Simon Purcell. I think you’ll agree that they've more than earned their stripes.

The Variation  play classic pop, soul, lounge and jazz songs, from artists such as Clean Bandit, Stevie Wonder, and The Beatles. The duo has a repertoire of over 250 songs covering the 1950s to the current top 40.

Included:

• PA and lighting system to light up your stage and your dance floor (and use of our equipment from set up until midnight outside of London, or 1am inside of Greater London);
• Complimentary music before, in between, and after live sets if needed;
• An ‘off the menu’ song request;
• Tailored set list from over 250 songs;
• Travel

Extras:

• Light up letters '_&_' (from £288);
• Light up letters 'LOVE' (from £360);
• Band member DJing on laptop able to take requests from your guests on the night (from £240);
• Photo booth (prices start from £395 for 4 hours);
• Photographer to capture your best party moments (+£240).

The band is fully insured for up to £2,000,000 through MusicGuard, and all of our equipment is PAT safety tested.

Testimonials

This is our second time booking The Variation for an event, and once again they impressed! Would absolutely recommend them to anyone! Nastasha, London, Corporate Awards Party, October 2016

Absolutely fantastic. We held joint 50th/21st and 18th; Everyone was dancing all night long. The band were amazing and loved by all generations. Rhona was very professional in the organisation and very accommodating and the band were exceptional. It made the party - thank you. Angus, Bertie & Natasha, London, Birthday Party, December 2016

The duo were absolutely amazing. We couldn't have asked for anything else from them. They had our guests on the dance floor for the whole evening. If you are thinking of booking a wedding band, make sure to go for The Variation, you will not regret it! They were also completely flexible with timings, and even came to set up early so they were not setting up when our guests were there. I would recommend them to everyone I know!! Sophie & Chris, London, Wedding, July 2016

The duo were not only incredibly talented but they also went out of their way to bring a party vibe to our 1920s wedding, making sure all our guests were having a fantastic time! The dance floor was packed throughout and their special requests songs meant so much to us as the bride and groom. We couldn't have asked for better entertainment, and all of this was made possibly through Rhona's flawless planning. Thank you to The Variation, we would book again and definitely recommend to others!Becky & Ed, London, Wedding, December 2016

We had a really perfect experience with The Variation at our Wedding Celebration in Putney. Before the event the communication and planning with Rhona was clear and on point; selecting a set list was easy given the wide variety of styles available and Rhona was a able to direct us towards certain songs that the band played especially well. At the event, the band played wonderfully, bringing a great energy and enthusiasm to the evening. Getting the bride and her dad on stage to sing was a wonderful touch, as was their willingness to play an encore and hang around chatting at the end of the night. All members of the band were very talented musicians and they all worked together like seasoned professionals. Both singers deserve special mention for their soulful vocals and ability to work the crowd and engage with the audience. We would highly recommend the band and would book again without hesitation. Nic & Simon, London, Wedding, December 2016

The Variation performed at our work Christmas party to a hard crowd but were an absolute hit! Had us all up dancing. Great set list. Great musicians. Amazing singers such great choices and they had lots of smiles for us and had us singing along. Shelley, London, Christmas Staff Party, December 2016

Thank you to you and the band… they were fantastic and the duo. Nothing but compliments all around. You were wonderful to deal with…. Thank you for all your help and patience! Everyone was dancing and the duo was terrific. Music was just fantastic… would definitely use you again. Alex, London, Birthday Party, September 2016

Just want to say a massive thank you to everyone last night! As we knew it would be, it was amazing! Great song choices and really kept the party going till we sadly had to stop! Natasha, Croydon, Corporate Awards, October 2016

Just wanted to send a quick thank you to you and The Variation for playing at our wedding. I'm not sure if they reported back, but the weather was TERRIBLE and everything was rather delayed so I think they were waiting around for quite a while, so I'm sorry for that. However, despite the weather, we had an amazing day and the band were absolutely brilliant! They were exactly what we wanted and had people up and dancing from the first note!! Thanks for your help in the run up and your advice on the set list. I'll try and recommend The Variation to friends getting married so I get to hear them again ;) Bex & Dan, Exeter, Wedding, August 2016

Just wanted to let you know that the band were all amazing on the night - we had such a great time and all our guests commented on how impressive the band were - the dance floor was busy all evening. Please would you pass on my thanks as I didn't get a chance to thank them all individually before they left and I really want them to know that they made it all perfect, especially giving up the keyboard for the first song as well! Thanks for all your help in organising everything, it was exactly what we wanted. Sally & Phil, London, Wedding, October 2016

FAQ

How long do you take to set-up?
The minimum set up time required is 60 minutes. However it's best to schedule in 90 minutes to mitigate any unforeseen issues that might arise. The band will work quickly to set up and sound check as soon as possible. Sound checking is very important for us as it means we'll be able to avoid poor sound quality, feedback, and other technical sound issues which could arise throughout the performance. A good sound check means you'll get a great performance.   

What time do you play?
Any time to suit you, standard prices are for 2 hours of live music, anytime between 6pm and 1am inside Greater London, or between 6pm and midnight outside Greater London  

How long do you play for?
We’re flexible! Usually we do 2 x 60 or 3 x 40 minute live sets in the evening and can provide either a pre-mixed disco (tailored to your tastes) or a crossfading bespoke playlist designed by you before, in-between and after live sets, so your whole night of entertainment is covered in one booking. We can also perform up to 2 hours’ worth of an acoustic set as an add-on, which is perfect for during drinks or dinner.  

Do you have your own PA and lighting?
Yes – all included in the price.  

Do you have Public Liability Insurance and PAT tested equipment?
Yes.  

Will you perform our first dance?
Yes, as long as we have two weeks’ notice we will learn the first dance of your choice.  

How much space do you require?
2 piece – 2 x 2m please!

How much power do you require?
2 x 13 amp sockets is fine for our system.  

Do I need to provide food/drinks?
All the hard work the band puts in from traveling to your venue, setting up, and working well into the night makes the band quite hungry and thirsty! So they would very much appreciate being fed and watered either before their performance or during a break. They don't expect a 3 course meal, and they won't drink on the job if you don’t want them to, but it's true that a happy band always results in a happy performance.   


Can we add a musician or have a smaller band? Of course! We flex our line up to suit stage sizes and budgets whether that means adding or subtracting band members to get you the perfect fit. Our normal line up is a duo with vocals and keys from Emily, and bass / sax and upright bass from Jaz.  


Travel We are based in London, and are happy to travel to any gig within Greater London for free. We are always happy to travel further afield for a performance, and we do frequently travel outside of London for shows. We have set fees to cover our travel expenses and overnight accommodation if required.    


Choosing Songs One of the things we pride ourselves on is our repertoire which has over 600 songs in it spanning multiple genres. And what’s more is you get to pick exactly what you want to here. In a standard 2 hour set we cover 32 songs. Once you book the band we encourage you to pick your favourites from the repertoire and leave the ordering up to our musical director to create medleys and flow within the set. We’ve been doing this for a few years now and know what works well on the dancefloor. If you’d rather hand the reins over to us that’s more than fine, or if you’d like you can use the traffic light system where you highlight which songs into green, amber and red categories and leave the design up to our musical director.  


Band Members Falling Sick As a working band, we work with a roster of official 'deps' or understudies ready to step in at a moment’s notice should an unforeseen circumstance occur. They are professional well-rehearsed musicians representing the best talent out there, and for this reason we can guarantee the quality of our performance will not falter. Therefore you can be safe in the knowledge that if a band member falls ill we will be able to have another member of our collective step in seamlessly.   


Sound Limiters We can work with sound limiters! We have a few tricks up our sleeves for making sure you and your guests still get a slamming performance without cutting the power via the sound limiter. We can go acoustic, meaning we can have drums replaced by cajon or the drummer can use a smaller kit and even use feathered drumsticks or hot rods to reduce the decibel level. We can also have guitar and bass use less wattage for their amps and go acoustic if needed. We’ve dealt with sound limiters up and down the country and can confidently say a sound limiter won’t be a problem.