On Saturday March 21st 2009, Midnight Hour was very proud to perform at the “Black & White Ball for Autism”, presented by the wonderful people of New Jersey Autism (COSAC) at the beautiful Hilton Hotel in East Brunswick, NJ. Over the years, Midnight Hour has performed for Autism more often than for any other cause, and we were thrilled to have been chosen to be a part of this special event.
Emceeing the event was CNN’s Kiran Chetry, who offered touching comments and did a wonderful job of keeping the evening moving seamlessly. Also appearing at the Gala was Comedienne and Emmy Award Winner Judy Gold, who we were thrilled to meet. Judy is well known for her work in film, theater and television, including her many appearances on Sex & The City, The View, Hollywood Squares, Law & Order, and many other programs and specials. She had the room in hysterics, and she was the perfect addition to the evening.
The night was a great success, with some amazing items being sold in silent auctions, and we had a wonderful time. We want to thank Linda Meyers, Executive Director of Autism New Jersey, and also Brynn Aberici, the Special Events Coordinator for Autism New Jersey, for all they did to arrange for our performance.
Pictured below: CNN’s Kiran Chetry
Pictured Below: Linda Meyers, Executive Director of New Jersey Autism, along with none other than Max Weinberg (drummer of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band) and NJ Governor Jon Corzine.
On Sunday March 22nd 2009, Midnight Hour performed for the wedding reception of Ira and Elizabeth Platt at Harry’s Savoy Ballroom. The band loves performing at Harry’s Savoy … it’s a terrific venue, with a friendly staff and really beautiful ballroom. Gloria Talbot oversees the wedding receptions at Harry’s Savoy, and she does a wonderful job every time.
Ira and Elizabeth chose “I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You” by Elvis Presley for their first dance, followed by a traditional Jewish Hora. Our saxophonist, Darren Lucis, received a huge round of applause at the end of the Hora for his remarkable clarinet work during Hava Naglia. After dinner, their guests filled the dance floor and never let up. We kept the party going with the songs Ira and Liz had chosen from our song list – plenty of Motown, 70’s / 80’s / 90’s hits, some golden oldies like “The Twist”, and we were sure to play Liz’s favorite song, “Dancing Queen” by Abba.
We also got to meet photographer Susan Miller. Susan is a great photographer from Wilmington, and she did a great job of capturing the moments. Please visit her web site, Photography by Susan Miller.
Our best wishes for many years of love and happiness to Ira and Liz!
I am very pleased about my new purchase of stage lighting for the Sid Miller Dance Band. We now utilize state-of-the art LED lighting. LED lighting is great; it can be used at any venue because it doesn’t require as much power as conventional lighting units. As a result, it can be used even at venues that don’t have enough electrical power to run conventional lights. We have eight LED lights (four on each side of the stage for back lighting) as well as two multi light color changing units on the floor creating lots of ”energy” across the stage during the hot dance sets and four par 56 lights to create a subtle but beautiful “wash” of colors for the front of the stage. It’s exciting!
On March 14th, Jellyroll performed at the beautiful Greenville Country Club in Greenville, DE for the wedding of Cara Goeller to Michael Salerno. Jellyroll performed “Better Together” for their first dance, as well as “Here Comes The Sun” and “In My Life” for their parent dances. As always, it was great to work with photographer Laura Novak and Greenville Country Club’s Linda Gaynor to help make this such a perfect event.
Cara’s mother, Megan, wasted no time in sending us a kind note: Just wanted to thank Kurt and the band for a wonderful evening at my daughter’s wedding. Before the wedding I was told have good food and drink and a good band and the wedding will be a success. It was great advice and Jellyroll was fabulous! Thank you for helping to make Cara’s wedding the perfect day. Megan Goeller
Photo Courtesy of Laura Novak Photography
Midnight Hour was very proud to perform this past weekend for the Phoenixville Chamber of Commerce’s Fourth Annual Community Charity Ball. The wonderful folks from the Phoenixville Chamber of Commerce welcomed the band with open arms, and the band had a wonderful time with them. The Chamber’s Executive Director, Kim Cooley, went out of her way to spend time talking with the band, and expressed her sincere appreciation for our performance. To all of our new friends from the Phoenixville Chamber of Commerce, thank you for having us this year! You sure know how to have a great time! For more information on the Phoenixville Chamber of Commerce, please visit http://www.phoenixvillechamber.org/
Midnight Hour Bandleader Shavin Duffy with Phoenixville Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Kim Cooley at the Chamber’s 2009 Charity Ball, held at Rivercrest Golf Club on March 7, 2009. Photo by Mike Irby.
Leading up to and throughout this special event, Midnight Hour was very fortunate to work with Stacey Halstead of “Create The Moment” event planners. Stacey Halstead did a wonderful job of planning the evening in cooperation with the band, and thanks to Stacey the transitions of the evening were seamless. It’s always a pleasure to work with true professionals, and Stacey, we thank you for making us look so good! To find out more about Stacey, please visit the web site of “Create The Moment” at www.createthemoment.com
We had the pleasure of meeting photographer Mike Irby, who was set up in the lobby to take portraits as the guests arrived. Mike does a wide variety of things, from web design to photography at all kinds of events, and is a member of the Phoenixville Chamber himself. Mike, thank you for taking those shots of the band! For more information on Mike Irby, visit http://www.mikeirbyphotography.com/
This event also saw Midnight Hour returning to one of our favorite venues, Rivercrest Golf Club in Collegeville, PA. Midnight Hour has performed at Rivercrest many times, and the management and staff there are wonderful. We had played there just a month earlier on February 7th for a wedding reception, so it felt like home to perform in their beautiful ballroom again. We extend our sincere thanks to everyone at Rivercrest Golf Club for all they do to support Midnight Hour each time we perform there.
For more information on Rivercrest Golf Club, visit http://www.rivercrestgolfclub.com/
UP AND COMING: Midnight Hour is looking forward to performing later this month for the Autism New Jersey Black Tie Gala at The Hilton Hotel in East Brunswick, NJ! Click here for more details: http://www.autismnj.org/cosac2/Fundraisingevent
At a recent wedding reception Deja Groove rocked the Valley Forge Radisson - Waterford Ballroom, keeping the dance floor fully active from their smooth rendition of “At Last” to their show stopping rendition of OutKast’s “Hey Ya”…as another bride happily shook her thing like a Polaroid picture.
Congratulations Rachel & Paul!
Deja Groove Wedding
Photo courtesy of Ultimate Images
Philadelphia Party Band Contact
Establish with whom in the Philadelphia party band is your contact. This is the person who you should meet to discuss and plan details.
Philadelphia Party Band Event Timeline
The next step is to establish an event timeline. Prepare a timeline to be given to the Philadelphia party band, the caterer and other event professionals. Meet together to make sure each has a complete understanding of the event timeline.
Philadelphia Party Band Music Preferences
Agree ahead of time on the music choices and special requests. The Philadelphia party band is certain to have a list of music that you can choose from. Choose specific songs and music style so that you know exactly what to expect.
Philadelphia Party Band Responsibilities
Layout the expectations of the Philadelphia party band in regards to the event management. Is the band responsible for keeping the timeline moving? What announcements are to be made and who is the band responsible to make that happen?
Philadelphia Party Band Expertise
Your Philadelphia party band will also become a big resource to you while planning your event. They will have suggestions and expertise to offer as they have most likely hosted many events in the past. Share ideas and help each other in planning and executing the perfect event.
If your event is property planned and your Philadelphia party band has all the instruction needed, your event will be a success. Communication and pre-planning is the key to a perfect event.
Linda Dunkelberger is a freelance writer and editor working for Brandywine Valley Talent. The article “Instruction to Give Your Philadelphia Party Band for the Perfect Event” gives tips for planning the perfect party event. Brandywine Valley Talent is Philadelphia’s Premier Entertainment Company for Dance Bands, Wedding Bands, Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah Bands, Corporate, Gala and Social Premier Philadelphia Entertainment.
With Jellyroll looking forward to the busy upcoming 2009 wedding season, and hoping to create a starting point for our new blog, I am pleased to give a recap of some of our most interesting performances. In only the past two years, Jellyroll has performed at over 200 events including beautiful high end Philadelphia weddings and glamorous social events. Jellyroll continues to be very active in the community, lending its talents to many local fundraising events, including the Philadelphia Flyer’s Wives Fight For Lives Carnivals, where Jellyroll performed as the headline live musical entertainment at the Wachovia Center. Perhaps our most memorable events took place as Jellyroll performed twice at the White House, including a prestigous Congressional Ball. Over the past month, I had the honor of being interviewed on WMMR by Pierre Robert as well as Comcast Sportsnet by Jim Jackson.
I look forward to providing weekly updates on our band, Jellyroll, so please check in and feel free to send us your comments. Also, keep an eye out for some upcoming dates that will be open to the public, including a Children’s Hospital fundraiser with the Phillies on April 6th at the Crystal Tea Room in Philadelphia as well as a less formal party on the Deck of the Desmond Hotel on June 16th. More information can be found on our website calender.