Wedding and Reception at the Hilton Hotel / Ft. Lauderdale Marina

I hope you are getting ready for the New Year!

On Saturday, December 28, 2013 I had the pleasure of hosting the ceremony, cocktail reception, and reception for the Wedding of Sean and Leah. They are a great couple! I knew when I met with them that they were a couple that were supposed to be together...soul mates.

The event was held at the Hilton Ft. Lauderdale Marina. I always enjoy working there. The location is stellar and the staff are really great.

The ceremony was held at the pool. There is a small area where the wedding Hupa was set up. Both Leah and Sean wanted to keep the strong Jewish traditions alive. It was a very simple Hupa. As the guests were arriving, I was instructed to play classical contemporary songs. I typically use music from  the" Vitamin String Quartet". They really do a great job. If you don't know who they are, go to YouTube and have a listen. Perfect for wedding ceremonies.

As the parents and Grandparents walked in I played "Across the Universe" (Instrumental). Then the guys came in. I used "Help from my Friends" (Instrumental). Now the girls.

For them, I used "Here, There, And Everywhere" (Instrumental). Now Leah comes down the aisle. For her I was instructed to play "Something" (instrumental).

The Rabbi did the ceremony in Hebrew and English. As stated before it was very traditional. Of course, at the end, Sean broke the glass! Everyone cheered. It was a touching moment.

Now cocktail hour begins. I was instructed to play "guitar" music. For that, I used a great duo that I came across years ago. "Strunz and Farah" is the name of the group. I like "The heat of the Sun" the best. It is a great album! Both the bride and Groom came up to me and complemented on the music selection. they stated it was exactly what they wanted. That made me feel great

When the main room opened, I played some funky music to get the people in the mood for a party.

Only the Bride and Groom were introduced. I played their first dance " You and Me" by Dave Matthews. As soon as that song was over I played "The Hora". The whole room stood up and went to the dance floor. It was great! Both Leah and Sean were lifted in the chairs, and we danced to "Simon Tov and Mazel Tov, The Hava Nagila, as well as other traditional "Hora" songs. That lasted almost 10 minutes!

I then invited the Dads up to do the traditional blessing over the bread and wine (Motzie and Kiddish). Then the best man got up to do his speech. It was hilarious! Evidently, he was the person who introduced Leah to Sean. He stated that throughout the speech, stating that "HE" is the reason for the party, and "HE" is the reason for everything that was going on. He also stated that "HE" was paying for none of it.....VERY FUNNY STUFF.

After the toast, they served dinner. Once dinner was over , I invited Leah to dance with her Dad, Sean to dance with his mom and then all of the guests to join in. I was instructed to use one song for all of this. "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole was requested. Now that everyone is on the dance floor, I get the ball rolling! I played a lot of music from the 70's and 80's per Sean and Leah's request. Even though they are a young couple, they stated that they preferred that music over the new stuff. Of course, I changed it up throughout the evening anyway just to keep the flow going. It was received very well.

About an hour before the party ended, I was asked to have them cut the cake do the garter and bouquet toss. I used "Eye of The Tiger" for the Bouquet and "Danger Zone" for the Garter.

The cool thing was that the people who caught the garter and bouquet were actually a couple. they have been together for 6 years. That was nice to see.

Now back to dancing. Since the alcohol has been flowing for some time now, I was asked to play some interesting music. "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" and some other booty music were a favorite.

I also played some new music. It kept the party going for the rest of the night.

I have to say that this was a really fun party with a great group of people who loved the bride and groom!

-- Gregg P. Pellito