Acoustic wedding singer
Acoustic Wedding Singer & Guitarist for Hire Across the UK
I'm Tom. I've played more than 400 weddings as a singer and acoustic guitarist, across the UK and in Italy and Croatia. Everything you need to decide is on this page: what the job actually involves, what each part of the day costs, and what it sounds like.
One person, one guitar, one professional sound system. Based in the East of England, travelling nationwide, and every price is published rather than quoted on request.
The job
What does an acoustic wedding singer actually do?
The ceremony
Music as guests arrive, the song you walk in to, something during the signing of the register, and a lift on the way back out. Barely amplified, tuned to the room, and timed to your registrar rather than to a stopwatch.
The drinks reception
Background ambience while the photographs happen and the drinks go round. Loud enough to fill the gaps, quiet enough that nobody has to shout over it.
The wedding breakfast
Two sets across the meal, played between courses and around the speeches. Dinner entertainment that sits under the conversation instead of competing with it.
First dance and the evening
A custom acoustic arrangement of your first dance, then a proper evening set with the PA driving it. On the spot requests are welcome, and I take them all night.
The setup is fully battery powered, so no mains electricity is needed. That matters more than it sounds: garden ceremonies and marquees rarely have a socket where the music needs to be. As an acoustic singer for wedding ceremonies I would rather solve that in the planning call than on the day.
Hear it before you read another word about it
This is a first dance I arranged for one guitar and one voice, recorded as it is played on the day. There are 44 more recordings and 18 videos on the listen page, and the full repertoire is published too.
- A professional PA, sized for your room, indoors or outdoors
- Acoustic guitar and vocal looping, so one person sounds like more than one person
- Full setup and soundcheck before your guests arrive
- Backup equipment for everything, in the van, every time
- A planning call before the wedding, on the phone, as long as it takes
- Sample recordings of your key songs sent before the day, so you hear them first
- Travel at 50p a mile from Stansted, Essex, and I tell you the figure before you book
- Public liability insurance, certificate carried, sent to your venue on request
Solo, or a band
Why choose a live acoustic singer over a band?
Intimate, and every word audible
One voice and one guitar in a room of forty people is an intimate performance that lets your guests hear every word. A five piece in the same room is a wall of sound and a very long invoice.
Flexible set lists, decided on the day
I can adapt to the mood of your day in real time. If the ceremony runs twenty minutes late, I keep playing. If your uncle asks for something I know, he gets it.
No van, no crew, no logistics
No large van, no setup crew, no complex logistics, and no eight person load-in through a Grade II listed doorway. I arrive, I set up quietly, I soundcheck before your guests arrive.
It fits where a band will not
Perfect for smaller venues, gardens, and outdoor ceremonies where a full band won't fit. Battery powered, so a field with no socket is not a problem.
On cost: parts of the day start at £300 and three parts come in around £1,000, which is usually well below a five piece band for the same hours. All the pricing is on the site, so you can check that yourself rather than take my word for it.
The promises
What to expect when you book Tom Ryder
MP3 samples before the day
Before your wedding I'll send you MP3 samples of any custom songs you've requested, so you know exactly how they'll sound on the day. Nobody hears their first dance arrangement for the first time on the morning of the wedding.
Early arrival and full setup
I arrive early to set up, test sound levels, and check everything works. Setup and soundcheck are finished before your guests walk in.
Professional PA included
A professional grade PA sized for the room and a wireless microphone are included, along with backup equipment for everything. No hidden costs and no equipment hire line on the invoice.
Available seven days a week
Seven days a week, all year, anywhere in the UK. Midweek weddings are often easier to book at short notice than a Saturday in July.
Prices
Every price, in public
- Ceremony30 to 40 minutes£400
- Afternoon drinks reception45 to 60 minutes£500
- Wedding breakfast2 × 45 minutes£600
- Evening drinks and turnaround45 to 60 minutes£500
- Evening party set45 to 60 minutes£400
- Your first danceOne song£300
Ceremony
30 to 40 minutes
£400
Afternoon drinks reception
45 to 60 minutes
£500
Wedding breakfast
2 × 45 minutes
£600
Evening drinks and turnaround
45 to 60 minutes
£500
Evening party set
45 to 60 minutes
£400
Your first dance
One song
£300
Pick the parts you want and add them up. Nothing starts below £300, and there is no minimum number of parts.
Where I play
Areas covered
- Wedding singer in Hertfordshire
Down Hall, Auberge du Lac and the country house venues along the A10.
- Wedding singer in Essex
Parklands Quendon Hall, Apton Hall, Five Lakes and the barns in between.
- Wedding singer in London
Tight load-ins, lifts and sound limiters. Greenwich Yacht Club and similar.
- Wedding singer in Suffolk
Milsoms Kesgrave Hall and the coast road venues.
- Wedding singer in Cambridgeshire
Swynford Manor and the college city weddings.
Destination weddings welcome. I've performed at venues in Italy, at Lake Como, Lake Garda and in Tuscany, and in Croatia in Dubrovnik. Also available for destination weddings: Italy, Croatia. An acoustic guitar player for weddings travels lighter than a band, which is usually why those bookings happen at all.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can you learn a song that isn't in your repertoire?
Yes. Send the track and I'll learn it and send an MP3 sample in advance so you can hear exactly how it will sound on the day.
Do you perform outdoors?
Yes. The setup is fully battery powered, so no mains electricity is needed. Suitable for garden weddings, marquees, and outdoor ceremonies.
How long do you perform for?
Each set is typically 45 to 60 minutes. Most couples book two or three sets across the day, for example ceremony plus drinks reception, or drinks reception plus wedding breakfast.
How far in advance should we book?
Saturdays in peak season, May to September, book up 12 to 18 months ahead. Midweek and off peak dates are often available with shorter notice.
Before you ask
The four things couples want to know first
One person, or a band?
One person. Acoustic guitar, vocals and a looper, which lets me stack a rhythm part under a melody so it sounds fuller than one man strumming. It is not a band and I would not pretend otherwise. If you want a brass section for the party, book a band for the party and me for the daytime.
How loud does it get?
As loud as the room needs and no louder. For a ceremony that is barely amplified. For an evening set it is a proper PA with the guitar driving it. I soundcheck before your guests arrive, so nobody hears me setting up.
What if we want a song you have never played?
Send it. I learn requests, and I send you a recording of your key songs before the day so you hear the arrangement first rather than on the morning. If a song genuinely does not work on one guitar I will say so instead of taking the booking and hoping.
Outdoors, in England, in April?
Fine. The setup runs on battery power, so a garden ceremony with no socket anywhere near it is not a problem. All I ask is cover for the guitar and the PA if it rains. I have played ceremonies under a pergola, in a field and in a barn doorway.
Ready to book? Check availability and I'll come back within 24 hours with a yes or a no.
Evidence
Six weddings. Every one photographed.
Real couples, real rooms, named and dated. These are the ones I have photographs of. Tap any of them for the venue, or for the day written up.
Availability
Tell me the date and I'll tell you if it's free
I answer availability within 24 hours, and everything we agree goes in writing. A 50% deposit secures your date, and the balance is due one month before the wedding.
Or call me on 07739 469321