Selecting a song to perform your First Dance to can be a daunting task! Having performed at countless Wedding’s throughout London, I can attest to the difficulty’s newlyweds have when selecting a track both of them can dance to. In reality the first dance should be both enjoyable and memorable. Throughout this blog I’ll be sharing some tips which I hope will ensure that yours is a dance to remember!
It’s vitally important to consider the length of the track to elect to perform your first dance to. Often if the newlyweds haven’t choreographed a routine in advance their performance can appear somewhat awkward and clumsy. This is particularly if they’re inexperienced dancers who lack confidence. Selecting a track to perform to which is relatively short in duration can help to avoid this. In my personal opinion the perfect length of a first dance at a Wedding is somewhere in-between two and three minutes.
In recent years I’ve noticed that a number of newlyweds have chosen to invite guests at their Weddings to join them on the dance floor during their first dance. Personally, I think that this works extremely well and is a fantastic way to engage friends and family who’d like to participate in what is such an incredible moment for all involved. In addition, inviting others onto the dance floor can be a great way to relive the pressure from Newlyweds who are conscious of their dancing limitations! I’ve found that encouraging others onto the dance floor relives much of this pressure.
Typically, Weddings are attended by people of a variety of ages. As part of this it’s not uncommon for couples to dance to more than once track during their First dance performance. This can work particularly well in my opinion If newlyweds are able to select tracks which are popular among the various groups in attendance. As a DJ I’ve often been asked to mix tracks in advance. It’s something that I’ve greatly enjoyed and as a Wedding DJ I love to see people react the different tracks I feature whilst couples are performing.
It’s particularly nice, in my opinion, when couple choose songs which have a sentimental value to them. I can remember a Wedding I DJed at recently which featured a first dance routine performed to ‘I’m Yours’ by Jason Mraz. The performance was made even more special by the groom who explained that the song had been a favourite of the first child he fathered with his wife. Their subsequent performance had practically everyone in attendance in tears.
Performing a dance routine which has been choreographed in advance can be a great option. For obvious reasons this is probably more suitable for confident and or accomplished dancers! During my time as a Wedding DJ I’ve seen countless routines performed in this fashion and in all cases, I’ve been pleasantly surprised and thoroughly entertained. Similarly, I would say that such dance routines have been very well received by Wedding guests who have, on occasion decided to join in!
Working as a Wedding DJ throughout London has taught me that there are a variety of ways to make a success of a First Dance. What’s most important, in my opinion, is that the performance is one the newlyweds can savor for the rest of their lives. As is the case with the other elements of a Wedding the first dance is not something you can re do! Because of this it’s imperative that it is planned and most importantly well executed.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this blog. If you have you can find more just like it here. Please also take a look at a blog I read recently which features 100 ‘Alternative’ First Dance Tracks!