I had a bunch of friends and family comment on how fantastic it was having live music at our…read morewedding! We attended a wedding a year ago and fell in love with the live band at the cocktail hour! We met David and we knew we'd be working with him once it was our time. We had people on the dancefloor the entire night and I didn't even have a chance to eat dessert!

A Great Wedding Band…read more Wedding Date 2.1.25 As Father of the Bride, I thought that DSR Music was the best and that the music helps make the wedding reception a great and memorable one. The band members and vocalists are so talented and energetic in all genres of music making each song fun to dance to. The dance floor was packed all night and we received complements for weeks about the quality of the band and how much fun the wedding was. David Rothstein does a great job as the MC for the night but the benefits of using DSR start long before the wedding day. David takes the time to get to know the wedding couple and their family, understand what is important to them at the wedding, learn the type of music they are interested in hearing and provides special touches for the bride and groom. I think so highly of DSR Music that I used them for my oldest daughter's wedding in 2016 and my niece used them as well.

We hired Bill Pollack to provide the music for our wedding. We wanted live music and we knew we'd…read morepay more to get it, but I wouldn't exactly say that money was no object. From the beginning, the experience was extraordinary. Bill was responsive, honest, and focused on our needs from beginning to end. First of all, he really took the time to understand what we wanted. Since we wanted live music but for only about 100 guests, Bill suggested we use a 7-piece band rather than the full 11 piece orchestra we had originally heard about. The only difference, he explained, is that he drops the horn section and uses pre-recorded horns when necessary for a full sound. That suggestion alone saved us a couple thousand dollars, and the 7 piece band sounded fantastic. In addition to the band for the dancing, we wanted acoustic guitar music for the ceremony and for the cocktail hour, and dejay'd music for the dinner hour. He arranged all that as well. The musicians learned all the songs we wanted them to learn for our ceremony and did a great job on all of them. I also really appreciated his honesty and professionalism. He was truly interested in what kind of music we wanted to hear at the wedding, asking a ton of questions about what we listen to at home, what we liked at other weddings, what we didn't like, what we hated, etc. He was upfront that he didn't want to completely relinquish creative control to us because, let's face it, he's the professional and knows what the people want better than we do. They played exactly what we asked for at the ceremony, and then for the rest of the night they combined our specific taste preferences with their feel for the room to keep people engaged and having fun all night. Bill did the emcee responsibilities himself all night, introducing speakers, etc. He was very professional and personable, never over the top. He didn't verbally bully people into coming up to dance, he just kept tweaking the music until he won the whole room over. I just can't say enough about Bill and all of the musicians he brought with him. They were hands down the best vendor we dealt with in putting together our wedding, and they are a huge reason why the night incredible from beginning to end.

Recently, I had the pleasure of having Bill Pollack play for my wife and I at our wedding…read morereception, and it truly made the night. The Bill Pollack Orchestra is the most professional collection of talented and energetic performers I have seen in this setting. Normally, wedding bands inspire thoughts of cheesy gimmicks, recycled play lists, and less than stellar performances. Bill Pollack breaks the mold, and then some. Starting at the cocktail hour, Bill and two other members of his band played upbeat, classic jazz standards to keep the mood light. They were smooth, jazzy, and on point with all of their renditions and already a big hit of the evening. During dinner, they performed again as background music for the meal, and Bill served as emcee of the festivities. As great of a musician as Bill is, he may be even better at emceeing, and he always was on top of things and easily broke in and out of music to make special announcements, keep the evening flowing, and seamlessly returning to playing beautiful tunes. Then, the real reception started, and the dance floor NEVER cleared. Using his full arsenal of performers, Bill wowed every single guest, and we are still hearing weeks later about how they were the "best wedding band" many had ever seen. Wanting our night to be truly memorable, Bill took every request we made and ran with it. We wanted my groomsman to sing the first song, and he made it perfect! That was truly the first "Unforgettable" moment of the evening. The first half of the evening they played standards, disco, and swing era music. The music was a perfect mix of dance, slow jams, and classic standards. Needing a break, the musicians took a 30-minute rest and Bill took over duties of DJ and kept the dance floor humming. Upon returning from the break, the rest of the night was a blur because I have NEVER seen a dance floor so lively! Once they started with a spot-on rendition of "Moves Like Jagger," it was on! Sweat was flying, grandmothers were dancing, and nobody was leaving the floor. Every single musician in the band truly poured every ounce of energy into each song, kept every guest engaged, and rocked their show. We can never truly thank Bill enough, but we will say that he comes as the most highly-recommended professional musician/DJ that we have ever witnessed. He is a joy to work with, easy to contact, and an incredible talent. THANK YOU AGAIN BILL! Dustin and Alyssa

We are truly loving working with Martin Metzger. Our 12-year old son looks forward to his lessons…read moreand is excited to play the music he and Martin choose together. Martin strongly believes in allowing kids to follow their interests, and has the talent, interest, and patience to help them do so in a wide range of genres. Martin is knowledgeable and dedicated both as a musician and as an educator. We travel a bit of a distance for lessons and are convinced it's well worth our time. We recommend him highly to anyone at any age looking for a great guitar instructor.

Choosing the Metzger Music Studio has truly been one of the best decisions of my and my wife's…read morelives! Our daughter goes to Martin for guitar lessons and I fear I may not be able to convey here just how amazing he is and what his instruction has meant for our daughter as a musician! I would recommend Martin and his crew any day! We wanted to get our girl started on guitar very early, only because she was exhibiting an affinity toward music and guitar that got us thinking it wouldn't hurt to try her at guitar, so we contacted Martin. He readily welcomed the notion of trialing and the rest is history. Besides being a phenomenal guitarist, his being an amazing person and having a Masters in Education have both manifested in the amazing way in which Martin teaches our girl to play the guitar. He works with her at her own pace, taking cues from how she learns in order to tailor his instructions to suit her learning, all the while making the lessons equal parts guitar and fun, entertaining our girl's every whim to be jovial and enjoy learning the guitar. He shows her the utmost respect and teaches her in a way that has inspired her to look up to flamenco legends. For her age, that level of aspiration itself is awe-inspiring and the credit goes to Martin. He doubles down on skills that our girl is good at while helping her elevate those she needs more work on, from strumming to chords to rhythms to percussion to improvising. We love his holistic approach of teaching the pupil to actually feel music and rhythm rather than just to learn to play the guitar. His methods have resulted in wonders! We have been fortunate to witness moments of our girl's performance that have impressed even Martin. That is the level of quality of instruction one can expect from Martin. He stresses on practicing, practicing and practicing some more. He also encourages playing at recitals that he arranges for his students, which is a great way for the student to be inspired and be audience-ready. He has also started our girl on sight reading, which is helping her to learn to play the guitar while reading music. I would characterize Martin's overall approach as informed (no unnecessary attachments to old or new methods just for the sake of it), inspiring, feedback-loop-based, very disciplined and simply amazing! And his guitar skills? Incredible! Let me put it this way, we have considered migrating to a warmer climate and one of the top considerations that have kept us in Chicago is that we don't want to lose Martin as our friend and our daughter's guitar teacher. And he's been a great friend to our daughter too. There are great guitar teachers everywhere, but there's only one Martin. Our girl's weekly guitar lesson is one of the highlights of her week that she looks forward to. It is a joy to see her learn to play the guitar and have the time of her life while at it! As for the rest of his studio, Martin has 16 teachers on every instrument (and even voice) who travel to people's homes for lessons, which is convenient for many families. The teachers are well-educated, passionate about their instruments and art, and they are wonderful with children. As I alluded to earlier, the studio also puts on three recitals free of charge every year! I only give online reviews when I feel the recipient absolutely deserves it and reviewing Martin and his studio was a no-brainer! I wholeheartedly recommend the Metzger Music Studio for any potential student interested in developing a lifetime love for learning music!

Can I just say that this part of my wedding was not only the easiest to plan, but was the most…read moreeffective in creating the atmosphere we desired! Patti Lupo and the Crew are fabulous (...and I know! I played in a wedding band!). They have a wonderful list of tunes and are open to 1 or 2 additions. They played everything from classical piano music (ceremony), jazz combo (dinner), and everything beyond for the reception: classical rock, motown, and funk to the pop hits of the last 5 years. Excellent! I am not joking when I say I barely remember the evening passing! Not because I was drinking (because I wasn't), but because I was literally on the dance floor the entire time. We have a crew that loves to dance, and the floor was NEVER empty. I have recommended Patti Lupo to 4 other friends and 2 have signed contracts that I know of so far. They played my wedding, my sister's, my cousin's, my best friends, and her sisters and are about to play 2 more of my close friends. They never bore and never tire and are SO REASONABLE! I am serious when I say you do not need to look any further! From this musician, I give 5 GIANT *'s.

Patti Lupo Music is top notch! Patti and her band played at our wedding this past weekend and at…read morethe end of the night our guests did not want to leave! We had guests tell us that they NEVER dance at weddings and that they were on the dance floor all night for the first time since their own wedding many years ago! We were on a tight schedule because our wedding reception was relatively short. When we met with Patti we focused a great deal on the schedule and the things we wanted to make sure we covered throughout the night. Patti did not miss a thing! The evening flowed perfectly and Patti and her band were great at reading the crowd on the dance floor. Our guests did not stop dancing the entire night! Patti Lupo Music is also very reasonably priced compared to the other full size bands in Chicago. We spent a long time looking for a band that was what we wanted for the price that we could afford and Patti's band was it! If you want an incredible band for your wedding without having to break the bank... Patti Lupo Music is your band!

We have used three musicians from the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band for many years at our…read moreorganization's annual reception. They are simply wonderful. A number of our guests have commented on how simply great they were. We look forward to having them again at next year's event!

We had a fantastic concert at our library with the Maxwell Street Klezmer Quintet! We received so…read moremany wonderful comments from our patrons. They attract a large crowd and filled our meeting room.

I wish we could give more than five stars. Rendezvous was the best band we have ever heard at a…read morewedding, and our guests still cannot stop talking about their amazing performance. Ask for an "East Coast" style wedding. They started playing right when the guests began to enter, and had everyone on the dance floor the entire time. The only complaints we heard from guests was that their feet hurt from dancing so much. We worked with Toni and Sarah leading up to the event, and they were so incredibly helpful. They listened to what we wanted in terms of song choices, energy level, and overall atmosphere, and were so flexible in learning our first dance song. The songs they played during meals were absolutely beautiful, and all band members, including the four singers, were so talented. Each signer had their own unique style, and they all worked so well together. I cannot recommend this group enough. We had the most amazing wedding, and a very large part of the experience for us and for our guests was this amazing and engaging band. I wish we could hear them again.

Seemed great - talked to us and were interactive - until they weren't. We scheduled time to come…read moresee them live and specifically asked if they would let us know if someone wanted to book before us and they said yes. Next thing we know we get an email saying our date is gone, no explanation and no apologies. Wrote back to express my disappointment and never heard back.

For years we have relied on Randy for the tuning and maintenance of our pianos (Steinway grand and…read moreYamaha upright). Knowledgeable and highly skilled, he has also shown himself to be flexible and unfailingly responsive throughout. Highly recommended.

Hired to tune my piano and repair a broken key. Piano was tuned and key was repaired, however,…read moreduring the servicing another key was broken and left unrrepaired. He moved the broken key to the end, which is seldom used, but disappointed with the outcome.

My piano had not been tuned in many years - about 10 or so. Caleb Crockett of Chicago Piano Tuner…read morewas better than I expected. He was on time and spent quite a bit of time on my piano. It has never sounded better. (He plays better than I do.) I will continue to use Caleb and his company in the future. He's great!

Punctual, did a great job on a piano that had been out of tune for many years, and reasonably…read morepriced.

Absolutely made our ceremony and cocktail hour so special! 10/10 communication and experienceread more

I booked the String Theory Chamber Ensemble for my grandmother's funeral service. When booking they…read morewere very empathic and easy to work with. They are were able to bring a portable piano and their equipment. I was very happy with their performance. They played beautifully and really added a nice touch to the service

DJ Aumir was superb and great to work with! He kept the party alive all night and didn't miss a…read morebeat. He was so good that our guests couldn't stop raving about the vibe and music the next few days. We definitely gave him a challenge with our music selection, but he seamlessly blended the different genres without missing a beat. I'm normally a harsh critic of DJs, especially when they don't know how to mix well, but this was far from the case with DJ Aumir. Hard to find anything bad to say! If you're looking for a solid DJ who will keep you on your feet all night, definitely connect with him. You won't be disappointed!

DJ Aumir was truly unbelievable. From the very beginning, he was both an incredible collaborator…read moreand an endless source of creative inspiration. We gave him a few playlists to share our overall vibe, and he went above and beyond--asking for a detailed breakdown of the energy we wanted at each moment and location throughout our multi-event celebration. Whether it was the ceremony, the rooftop cocktail hour at our pre-wedding sangeet, the themed speakeasy cocktail hour, or the full-on sangeet dance party, he curated each set with intention and total mastery. His mixes were unlike anything we've ever heard. He seamlessly blended Indian, Western, reggaeton, Afrobeats, Bollywood, and more, creating unique mashups that fit the mood and the venue perfectly. The sangeet reception mashup he crafted was out of this world. I had at least ten guests come up to me asking if he would make a mix just so they could relive the night and use it for their own weddings. Beyond his talent, Aumir's energy, professionalism, detail-oriented-ness, and creativity made him a dream to work with. His timing was flawless, his lighting and setup brought every space to life, and he executed every moment with passion and precision. He is a rare gem, and it would honestly be a mistake not to hire him. Highly, highly recommended!