The Original Recipe Band...We have really mixed feelings about our experience with them…read more Unfortunately, more negatives than positives stand out, which is our reasoning for the 2 stars instead of the neutral 3 stars. We were recently married in Hill Country, and felt very strongly about having a live band rather than a DJ at our wedding, mostly because all of the weddings that stood out in our memories had awesome live bands to make the reception memorable. We did a lot of research on bands, which definitely took a lot of time. Getting married in the Austin area leaves a ton of options to sort through! What originally attracted us to the band is that they were large, seemingly flexible in accommodating our wishes, offered a great price, and despite not having many online reviews, they provided us with a list of emails to previous clients who we were able to email us references. While the "booking" process what relatively easy, once we did book, our impression of the band manager, James, started to decline. While he was initially quick to respond to us when we were scouting them, once we booked he took months to get our signed contract back to us. I had to email and encourage him multiple times. I come from a family of lawyers and have always had the mentality that nothing is final or confirmed until it is in writing, so waiting so long to see our agreement in writing made me uncomfortable. James often commented that he was preoccupied with moving forward with other endeavors professionally and home repairs, and that this was the reasoning for his delay, which I found to be unprofessional. Let me throw in some positives: They were accommodating of our song choices for special dances. We arranged to have one of the band members play guitar for our ceremony. His name is also James (a different James than the manager) and he was very prompt at responding, kind, and his ceremony performance was excellent. The jazz/piano music for the cocktail hour were appropriate. When it came to the reception music and orchestrating the order of events, the manager, James, seemed to have no idea what was going on despite having had been emailed a timeline for the evening and order of events. He initially kept coming up to me (the bride) and asking me what was next, etc. Keeping him organized and on schedule was the last thing that I wanted to be doing at my own wedding. We had two wedding coordinators and he didn't even think to go to them first with questions without my prompting. When James was speaking and introducing speeches, etc. he was very mumbly and difficult to understand. After the first dances were over and it was party time, instead of playing music that would get people out on the dance floor it was still a lot of jazz and swing music...not exactly what's going to get 20 and 30 something's out on the dance floor. After asking our coordinators to have them step it up a bit with the music, things did get better. Another thing of note was that the transition between songs felt like it took forever. A song would wrap up and guests would just be standing and waiting for the next song. It made it difficult to keep the momentum going. A few guests would even shout out, "Come on! Let's keep it going!" Overall, it was not the experience we were hoping to have with our band. I feel like the band really sets the vibe for the night and it wasn't exactly the upbeat party atmosphere we had in mind. We had amazing experiences with all of our other vendors, but we would not work with ORB again.

Original Recipe Band performed at my daughter's wedding in January 2011 and did an outstanding job…read more Our guests commented repeatedly about how great the band was and how much fun they had. They played a variety of music and kept everything lively. Our guests were out on the dance floor dancing and truly enjoying the event. In addition to the actual performance, my experience with James Fenno in engaging the band, selecting the music, and working through the details of the schedule of events for the reception was exceptional. He is professional in his dealings and responsive to communications. I have to say that having Original Recipe Band perform for the reception really made the event successful. I highly recommend them to anyone planning a wedding.

I recently attended a friend's wedding in Austin and was blown away by this band. I was surprised…read morewhen she told me that she booked that band site unseen (or unheard in this case). She trusted her wedding planner to make the decision and luckily, it worked out great. Sauce was awesome! They are some of the best performers I've seen. They have wonderful chemistry and you can tell they love what they do. From old school Motown to '80s music and today's hits, this band not only does it, but does it well! Seriously, they had the crowd on the dance floor all night long and their energy was incredible. They played a huge variety of artists/songs, but some of my faves were Michael Jackson songs, Beastie Boys, Stevie Wonder, Outkast, and Black Eyed Peas. They have choreographed moves for almost every song they do, they include the crowd here and there, and their transitions from song to song are seamless. If you are looking for a band to rock your socks off (literally), look no further than Sauce The Band!

OUTSTANDING performers!! It's impossible to not have a FABULOUS time when in the presence of this…read moregroup! The entire band gives everything they've got to ensure guests have fun! You can't help but get up & move!! Ten person band complete with saxophone & horn! We have watched them perform over several years in both Austin & Fredericksburg - they are TOPS - ONE OF A KIND!!

Easy 5 star review for this guy! We were married under a pecan tree in early spring so I wanted…read moresome light, happy music to accompany the ceremony and a solo guitar sounded like the perfect compliment. After scouring the internet, I found Charles' page and liked his repertoire, plus he was in our budget. After e-mailing back and forth, we booked him for our wedding ceremony. Charles was probably the easiest vendor to work with. Once we decided on our ceremony songs, I e-mailed them to Charles. I was a little nervous because a lot of the songs I requested weren't listed on his website, but he told me he'd have them ready for the wedding along with a few other songs to play while people mingled before the ceremony. The ceremony went perfectly and the music Charles played totally added to the emotion of the ceremony. I would definitely recommend Charles to anyone looking for a solo guitarist.

James is an awesome bass instructor. He tailored lessons to fit my skills and needs. And he's great…read moreat working with my schedule. Because he's a professional musician he brings a higher level of professionalism to the instruction. I highly recommend James to anyone wanting to learn bass or touch up their current skills.

James is a great bass teacher. I've had several bass instructors in the past but none of them were…read moreas informative, patient, and fun to work with as James has been. He is an experienced musician who knows his music and also makes learning fun. If you want to learn bass I would strongly recommend James.

The Nutcracker! What a great Christmas time tradition to share with young children. As we enter…read morefall I am already thinking about Christmas festivities! I realized I had not published my review before - and thought now just the right time to do so! This past Christmas ('11) I was looking high and low for an affordable, approachable, truly child-friendly (casual) performance of the Nutcracker in the Austin area. (I inquired about, of course, the extremely high priced, formal professional version down town and knew that was not quite what I was looking for.) I sent emails and made phone calls and stumbled upon The Ovation Ballet Company Nutcracker. I am very glad that I did. The tickets were very affordable and the show was held at the Vandegrift High School. Perfect! My group was very excited when I announced that we would be going to the show, and NO they would not have to wear formal Sunday clothes. They were free to just enjoy the performance. I highly recommend this for families and children. It's formal enough that kids get a clear sense of the excitement and preparation of the participants but casual enough not to dampen or overwhelm the young visitor! This version was just long enough to hold their attention as well. It's the feel of an upscale recital. The show itself featured a wide range of ages (mostly children), body types (both height and weight varied greatly), ethnicity, and ballet experience. The venue allowed for very easy and ample parking and large clean rest rooms to boot. The Vandergrift auditorium is intimate enough to allow the very last row to see clearly and not feel nose bled. The seating was quite comfortable. Apparently Ovation Ballet Company has been doing this for a long time and they told me that they usually sell out. I plan to get tickets again this year and bring a group of young kids! It's the perfect kid friendly and family friendly tradition or introduction to the performing arts!

Jane was amazing as Cinderella for my daughter's 8th birthday. She stayed in character for the…read moreentire hour and a half talking in a sweet, soft voice and giggling now and then. There were nine girls here wanting her undivided attention and throwing question after question out to Cinderella. Cinderella answered each one (What state do you live in? How did you get here? What does your car look like?) without batting an eye and with perfect Cinderella-esque answers. She taught the girls a song and a couple of dances as well as making crowns out of pipe cleaners. Each and every girl was convinced that the real Cinderella had popped in to share time with them. It was an amazing experience for my daughter and one none of those nine girls will forget.

On recommendation from Casino Connection, I hired Jane to come to our employee casino night party…read moreas Marilyn Monroe. She looked fabulous, and although she was only "obligated" to sing one song, she wowed our staff with several songs! She then spent a good bit of time visiting with our staff during the party, and was kind enough to pose for a number of photos with various staff members. She arrived on time and was always pleasant to deal with - in advance and during the party. I would highly recommend Jane to anyone who would like to hire her as a performer!

What an experience. Being serenaded by strolling minstrels as you hike through greenbelt areas in…read moreAustin. Will Taylor peppers the hike with his knowledge of local Austin history, geology, flora, fauna, and meditation, as Will and his fellow musicians serenade you with all manner of instruments and voices. All-in-all, a lovely way to spend 2-1/2 hours in Austin. Look up Strings in the Woods and register for an upcoming hike. You will not be disappointed.

We hired a Strings Attached duo to play during our wedding ceremony and were very pleased! We had…read moreto make some unexpected changes throughout the process and they were understanding and accommodating. The music sounded lovely, they had a great selection to choose from, and we were very happy with them!

I found the Show and Tellers playing one evening at the Central Market on Westgate putting on a…read morefantastic show. I had almost given up on hiring a band to play at our wedding. They put on a great show at Central Market so I immediately contacted them to inquire about playing at my wedding. They had a reasonable price and we ended up signing a contract! They were a huge hit everyone at the wedding! They play old timey home - swung jazz. I am still hearing stories about what a great time everyone had listening and dancing to them! If you are looking for a band for any event I would definitely recommend using them for anything. They appeal to a crowd of all ages and I am sure everyone will have a great time!

This band played at my wedding and did an amazing job! I'd give them six stars if it were possible!…read moreWe looked for a good band for months with no luck and then my wife ran into these folks. They were reasonably priced and clearly not trying to rip off everyone who dared utter the word wedding such as I figure most bands are out to do. Seriously if you ask a band to play a wedding they seem to want a few extra thousand dollars that what they normally make playing shows! They played excellent music that was just what we wanted! Our family had a blast dancing to the old timey tunes and blue grass and when a huge storm came through they attempted to finish out the show! If you are considering a bluegrass band these are your folks! I cant recommend them enough!