Virtual Weddings in Santa Clara County

News from our Supervisor: Seems like everything to going virtual. A bride and groom can be married via zoom. Things are changing. I do believe the receptions maybe going virtual too. It’s a changing world and we have to change with the times.

Virtual Weddings in Santa Clara County
 

We are entering the time of year when traditionally many couples hold their wedding ceremonies. Unfortunately, there will be no live wedding ceremonies in our community any time soon because of COVID-19 and the shelter-in-place order.

However, last week Governor Gavin Newsom made it possible for virtual weddings to take place in California. He issued an executive order temporarily suspending the state law requiring marriage ceremonies be performed “in the physical presence of the person solemnizing the marriage and necessary witnesses.”

The Santa Clara County Clerk-Recorder is now able to perform virtual wedding ceremonies via Zoom or Skype, as long as at least one half of the couple is a resident of Santa Clara County.


While a virtual wedding is not the same as a live ceremony, we want to make sure that couples who do not want to delay getting married have the opportunity to do so.

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Westin Hotel San Jose (San Jose)

Centrally located downtown. Very nice décor and staff actually helped me unload equipment. It is located in the heart of downtown. It is located close to San Pedro Square and close to the local night life. 

I have done two events at the Westin downtown. It is fairly easy to get to. There is parking underneath the building and they can also provide valet service. There is parking across the street and also garage parking a few blocks away. Parking underneath the venue is pretty expensive so the best bet would be to park on Third and San Carlos since it would be about five dollars.

The big event room is located in the first floor. Ideally if you are unloading items to take to the event then one would have to park in the front and unload the items then take them in then you have to park your vehicle. 

 Staff members were very cordial. I did speak with them afterwards and they appreciated the Spanish music that was played. 

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 How the world has changed the past month? It was once easy to just go to a restaurant to eat but now they are closed for seating. We used to have face to face meetings but that not is that case. Everyone has been forced to use zoom. I have never used it before and I learned how to use it while I virtually attended a dj conference. A few days later, I was able to catch a comedy show via zoom. They are still working out the kinks, and eventually it will be flawless. During the comedy show you can hear this guy unwrapping his snack and you can hear him munching. 

  Restaurants had to adapt to the situation. They are only allowed carry out so they have been issuing a lot of discounts. I have seen one restaurant advertise that the food will be semi prepared and all it needs is to be put in the oven at a low price.

  How is COVID 19 change the dj industry? Currently a lot of full timers are hurting since they cannot perform. It seems a lot of them are streaming their dj sets online to be on top of mind and also to keep their skills sharp. Are Venues going to have their own systems and have djs stream music from their home if social distancing is still enforced. Let’s hope their internet connection is strong! That may be an option. With this new normal, all companies need to adapt till things get back to the old normal. We are all in this together and we will strive. #coronavirus #dj #wedding #venue #streaming #livesets

A typical wedding reception is 5 hours long. One hour will go to the cocktail hour. That is when the bride and groom are taking pictures with their bridal party. The remaining four hours will be the grand entrance, the important dances, dinner and the open dancing.

A properly set up dinner will run from 45 minutes to an 1 hour 15 minute event. During that time the bride and groom will normally go table to table to thank the guests individually and be able to chit chat with their guests. Usually at this time, the photographer will be taking photos of the guests and the bride and groom at the tables. I have seen the bride and groom eat at the center table and the guests were going up to them and taking photos. Most of the bride and grooms opt to go to the tables. What usually happens is the bride and groom do not get a chance to eat their whole meal since they are visiting all the tables. Please make sure you get to eat since there is plenty of dancing and wedding to enjoy.

Keep in mind that if the wedding has a buffet it will take a little longer since folks are serving themselves and being excused table by table than if the waiters are distributing the food. Have the dj or the wedding planner excuse the tables if not people will help themselves thus slowing the process.

Menlo Park- Holbrook Palmer Park Wedding Set Up

I did a ceremony and cocktail hour plus dance for a wedding. For this venue, it would be beneficial to have an assistant to help set up the equipment. For the ceremony there is a power source to set up on the corner and the bride and groom walk down the stairs. Most djs could use one speaker for the ceremony but I opt to use two.

While the wedding party takes photos after the ceremony then everyone walks over to the dinner area for cocktails. The question that arises is how many set ups would one need for the reception area. People dance inside but the cocktails and dinner is outside. There are a few choices. If you wanted to make it perfect, then a set up can be done outside. One can have one speaker but I have to have balance and had two out. I had a microphone set up for the toasts and announcements. Another option would be to set up in the dance area and have the speakers go out to the cocktail area. It would save time in setting up but the dj has to be inside or he can have an assistant manning the music while the dj can mc in the cocktail area. And of course the dance area inside would have two speakers. Venue does offer in-house speaker system.

The Park is a huge park with plenty of parking. I would recommend going to the venue before hand so you are prepared for the set up. If you organize it well then all one needs are two set ups.

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I am a proud SJSU alumni and I like to keep tabs on my school. I had an opportunity to play at a fundraiser. They were at first going to have a band and have me be the start of the night but that did not pan out. I did not get a special playlist but I was told to play appropriate music for the night. A lot of the time one would play background music during dinner time so the guests can be able to talk. Then the end, the dj would play the festive music at a louder volume to get everyone to the dance floor and keep them on the dance floor.

The venue was an Elks Lodge in San Jose. It was right off the 87 so it was really easy to go to. They do have a stage area for the dj and a huge dance floor.  I unloaded my gear and took it to the stage. They had the baseball and softball players there to help with the service of the food.

I knew the most of the crowd was going to be 30 and up. Also I knew the players were more about 20 years old.  So for the dinner portion of the night I was playing mellow familiar background music. All the players for both sports were introduced. Once they did all the auctions and the raffles it was time to pump up the volume. I went with the classic dance jams that all ages would enjoy.

https://www.directmusicservice.com/blog/2020/02/dms-mini-mix-week-407-dj-wingman/

Did a birthday party on Saturday at the Los Gatos Lodge. This was an enjoyable party since the Birthday girl gave me songs that went through many generations. She had the music she grew up with and some current songs. She invited her family and friends to the celebration.

She did not want to give a speech but some folks gave speeches about her after dinner. Birthday girl was the first one on the dance floor and was dancing the whole night. It was definitely a good vibe that night and the dancing itch was in full effect. It did make the night go faster. It was a 6-hour event and cocktail and dinner only took two hours and the remaining 4 hours was straight dancing. We did not finish early and went straight to 11. I have to applaud the birthday girl and the guests who danced the night away. They were not teenagers but with their energy they seemed to be like them. I took all requests and even played some super new music then the guest realized we had to go back to the old school and we did go back to the old school. Because we know old school rules!

What birthday girl wanted was some up lighting.  She ordered 6 up lights and I spaced them around the room. Up lights do add some class to the room.

Staff was very nice and made sure I got to eat too. It was a quick set up and a quick close out. I was able to park in front of the venue and put everything away in my suv.