Frequently Asked Questions

Who we are

Who leads your organization?

I (Chuck Braman) am the drummer in and the bandleader of all the bands that you see on this site. I’m the person who gives advice and consultations to my clients and creates and signs their contracts. I also created and designed this website and all of its content, including the videos, which I edited, and the sound, which I recorded and mixed. I‘m extremely friendly and reasonable and like answering questions, so if you have any, please feel free to call me anytime at 212-989-5281.

Are you a booking agent?

Because of the large number of bands on my site, a lot of people who visit get the impression that I’m a booking agent. That's not at all what I do or who I am. I am a drummer who loves music and moved to New York so that he could play with the best musicians in the world. I’ve been here for over 30 years and made it my mission to create bands that feature my favorite musicians playing the music that I love the most.

How do your services differ from the national directories (The Bash, Gigsalad, Encore, Thumbtack, Upwork, Worldwide Entertainment, et al.)?

While the national directories claim to offer “the top ten jazz bands in New York City,“ “the definitive list of New York’s jazz bands” and the like, in reality they are paid databases open to anyone whose members bid against one another to increase their ranking. Unfortunately, this bargain-basement business model acts to drive out professionals.

Similarly, while these platforms claim to offer “worry-free guarantees,” “no-hassle refunds,” and the like, in reality the Better Business Bureau revoked the accreditation of The Bash (now owned by The Knot Worldwide Inc.) due to 183 customer complaints in the last 3 years.

By contrast, I’m an individual, not a large company, my musicians don’t join me, I choose them, and they are as a matter of reputation and fact all among the very top jazz musicians in New York City. I have also never had a single customer complaint over the course of the last three decades. So what I offer is different in kind from the directories.

How do you differ from other bands and other bandleaders?

What differentiates me is the caliber of the musicians in my bands—they are the same musicians that you would hear at The Blue Note, Jazz at Lincoln Center, or the Village Vanguard—and the quality of my bandleading. I’m very easy to work with, extremely responsible, and obsessed with doing a great job for you.

Where can I learn more about your background?

You can visit About the Bandleader on this site for a summary of my professional and musical background. For something more personal, you can find my brief autobiography on my alternate site, ChuckBraman.com.

How do you choose your musicians?

Having lived in New York for over 30 years, I’ve had the opportunity to play with hundreds of incredible artists. Over the course of that time, I’ve narrowed my choices to (1) the best musicians; (2) the most reliable professionals; (3) the nicest people; and (4) the particular musicians with whom I feel the most intimate musical and stylistic affinity. These are the musicians you’ll find on my site.

Booking procedure

Can I book the particular musicians in your videos to perform at my event?

Yes, subject to availability. The more lead time you give me, the more likely I will be able to accommodate your request.

How long In advance should we book the band? Is there a deadline?

There is never a deadline. The general principle is always the sooner the better, as the sooner a client makes a decision, the more likely it is that my musicians and I will be available. Or, from another perspective, the sooner a client makes a decision, the sooner my musicians and I can lock in the date and turn down other opportunities that might arise.

What is the procedure for booking one of your bands?

It‘s easy:

You choose a particular sideman or band of mine from the videos on this site that you‘d like to hire and let me know.
I contact them to determine their availability. If they are available (they usually are), I will send you a simple, straightforward contract that will act as an agreement between you and me. You can view a sample contract here.
Once you return the contract along with 1/2 of the total payment as a deposit, I will reserve your date for you and my sidemen and I will turn down any counteroffers we may receive (including more lucrative ones).

In other words, once you commit, my sidemen and I commit too, and fully!

What information do you need from me to prepare a contract?

The number of musicians.
The name and location of the venue.
The time you need the band to be set up at the venue (perhaps before a soundcheck, or before your guests arrive).
The time we will be allowed to leave (perhaps not until all of your guests have left).

Prices and payments

How do your prices compare to other sources?

The price you pay for a jazz band will vary widely depending on whether they are listed in an Internet directory, represented by an agency, or represented by an independent bandleader.

The bands listed in the national directories (The Bash, GigSalad, Thumbtack, Upwork, et al.) are the cheapest. This is because the directories are open to anyone willing to join, which attracts a mix of semi-professionals, all of whom bid against one another.

The bands offered by the agencies are the most expensive. This is because you are also paying for their offices, sales and support staff, and brand name.

However, one should consider the difference between price and value. A world-class jazz band can’t be offered at the bargain-basement prices that the directory sites encourage. Neither a world-class jazz band, nor a good value, can be offered by the entertainment agencies because of their lack of specialization and premium commissions.

As an independent bandleader with over three decades of experience, I offer some of the top jazz artists in New York City in a variety of bands that have played together for many years. This is my value proposition.

How much do you charge?

To answer that question, I need to know the type of event, the number of guests, its location, the number of hours you would like us to play, the size of the band, its instrumentation, and whether you have any special requests. Please take a moment to click the contact button on the upper right of the page, fill out the form, and I can get back to you with a quote, usually the same day.

Do you charge for travel?

There is no charge for travel for events in or near Manhattan. For events outside of the city, we charge per hour of additional time for travel.

Are you insured?

Yes, and insurance is included in our prices.

Will there be any additional expenses?

No. Our prices are all-inclusive and include the costs of travel, equipment, setting up and breaking down, and insurance.

What types of payments do you accept?

I prefer check, Zelle, direct deposit, or credit card (3%), but also accept ApplePay, Paypal, and Venmo.

When are payments due?

The deposit is due whenever you would like us to reserve your date. The final payment is due on or before the date of the event, before the start of the performance.

Should I tip the band?

Tips are appreciated, but not expected. When clients choose to tip, the amount typically ranges from $50–$200 per musician (tips are distributed evenly among the musicians, unless the client indicates otherwise).

Choosing a band

How should I choose from among your bands?

Several considerations can influence your choice of a band.

If your budget is limited, you may want to choose a trio rather than a quartet or quintet.

If you want ambient (background) music and/or you have a small space, you should avoid bands with saxophone or trumpet, which are naturally loud instruments, and vocalists who tend to attract attention.

If the venue has an acoustic piano, you’ll probably want to consider using a group with a pianist; if not, you might consider a group that features a guitarist or vibraphonist as the chording instrument.

At the end of the day, of course, it all comes down to your personal preference.

Can you help me choose a particular instrumentation?

Yes, I'd be happy to help you find the right size group and instrumentation for your event, taking into account the volume-level desired, if an in-tune piano is available at the venue, the amount of space available, your personal preferences, and your budget.

Having performed on thousands of occasions over three decades at every kind of venue imaginable, I can guide your choices by giving you expert advice tailored to your particular needs and circumstances.

What instrumentations do you recommend for a jazz trio?

I have three trios that feature a lead instrumentalist accompanied by acoustic upright bass and drums (I am the drummer). For choosing a lead instrumentalist, if there is an acoustic grand piano at the venue, I recommend piano as the lead instrument. If not, I would recommend a trio with vibraphone or guitar as the lead instrument. A keyboard in place of a piano is also an option. If space is an issue, a trio with guitar as the lead instrument takes up the least amount of space.

Do you offer other ensembles that aren’t on your site?

What distinguishes my services from other music services is that all of my bands are comprised of world-class musicians who have played together for many years and that you can see and hear the actual musicians I offer in our videos. With that said, I’ve been a bandleader in New York for over thirty years and so can assemble almost any group in any instrumentation you can imagine, including many not on this site. It is also quite possible to combine musicians from the various groups you see in the videos into other, different instrumental combinations. If you want a particular instrumentation that you don’t see on the site, just ask. As you can see from my videos, I never assemble bands that are less than excellent. And if for some reason you are looking for a style of jazz that I don't provide, such as gypsy jazz or Dixieland, I'm happy to recommend other sources or bandleaders.

Is there somewhere we can hear you perform live?

Yes, I perform at restaurant and concert venues throughout Manhattan and enjoy meeting fans and clients.

However, given that I lead many different bands, on any given week it may be unlikely that I will be performing with a particular band that you may prefer from my website. In addition, the repertoire and style of jazz that we typically perform at restaurants, concerts, and nightclubs tend to be more adventuresome than the repertoire and style of jazz we perform for private events and so not necessarily representative of the music we would perform at your event.

Conveniently, the videos you'll find on our site features my bands performing with the exact musicians and in the style that we would perform for your event, and so is similar to hearing us perform live, only without having to leave your home, and with the ability to see and hear many bands easily and in a short time period.

Do you have a CD or audio recording of your band we can listen to?

I offer something much better than an audio recording: two or more full-length videos of each of my bands so that you can see and hear the group and learn everything there is to know about our musicians and music. You will find them all on this website.

I'm an administrative assistant. My boss asked me to find several bands online to choose from. Which of your bands do you recommend?

Because I lead many bands rather than just one, and all of my bands feature New York‘s top jazz musicians in professionally-produced videos, you can make your boss’s decision much easier by simply directing him or her to this website, or putting him or her directly in touch with me as an advisor. This provides a better and easier alternative than trying to choose a single band from this site and then combing through the national directories, which are dominated by semi-professional bands, to try to find others.

I’m an agent. Do you have a special website I can show my client that doesn’t have your contact information?

If you let me know who your client is and what date is under consideration, you can feel free to safely share my site without fear of my ever contacting them directly. One reason why I would never do that is that I pride myself on my integrity and reputation; another is that it’s in my self-interest to establish a trusted, long-term professional relationship with you. I don’t want to work with you just once; I want to work with you as often as possible, and for many, many years!

Repertoire

What songs do you do?

My sidemen and I know hundreds—and hundreds!—of Great American Songbook standards, jazz standards, and bossa nova standards, correctly and by heart. In addition to these, I typically bring fake books with charts for hundreds more. And in addition to these, each specific band of mine has an additional repertoire that is unique to it, curated by myself for the instrumental bands and my vocalists for bands they are featured in. At your request, I can make any or all of these song lists available to you to choose your favorites from.

Do you have a song list we can see?

Yes, we have song lists available upon request for whichever jazz band, instrumentalist, or vocalist you choose.

Do you take requests?

Yes, when the request is appropriate for our genre (the style and instrumentation of the band). Generally speaking, we already know and/or have music available for all of the Great American Songbook, Brazilian bossa nova, and jazz standards. For more esoteric requests, so long as there is sheet music available for it, and it is compatible with our genre and instrumentation, yes. If we don’t know it and the sheet music is not otherwise available, we can create a chart from the original recording for a nominal fee.

Can you play ceremony music? (weddings)

Yes, my pianists can perform traditional ceremony music (Canon in D, Wagner’s “Bridal Chorus,” and The Wedding March) as well as non-traditional ceremony music.

Can you play upbeat music for dancing? (weddings)

If you’re looking for modern dance music such as hip-hop, R&B, rock, or Motown, the best alternative is to hire a DJ for the latter part of the evening and my jazz trio for the cocktail hour and/or dinner music. Alternatively, if you're looking for upbeat jazz for swing dancing later in the evening, I would recommend simply adding a saxophone and/or trumpet and/or a jazz vocalist to the jazz trio that performs for the cocktail hour and dinner.

At the event

What time will the musicians arrive?

I ask my musicians to arrive in time to be set up 1/2 an hour in advance of the start of your event, which means that they will arrive at the venue about an hour in advance. As the bandleader and drummer, I arrive about 2 hours in advance.

What is your performance attire?

Black suits, shirts and ties unless requested otherwise.

Do you need a separate sound system?

Jazz is essentially acoustic music, so ideal clarity and sound levels are produced when we only amplify the naturally quieter instruments (acoustic bass, guitar, vocal, etc.) up to the natural volume level of the naturally louder instruments (drums, saxophone, etc.). This works ideally in the vast majority of environments in which we perform. In circumstances where more volume is required, most large venues have in-house sound systems together with their own sound crews.

Should we worry that the band might be too loud?

You needn’t. More often than not, my bands are hired to serve as background music for conversation, and we are experts at fulfilling that function. Because I am the bandleader as well as the drummer, I’m extremely conscientious when it comes to keeping the volume level of the drums at an appropriate level; in fact, I’m able to play more softy than an acoustic piano. And as a bandleader, I’m used to directing my sidemen to keep their total sound levels below the level of the surrounding conversation. In addition, I’m very easy to work with; if for any reason you think we may be too loud, just let me know and we will adjust accordingly.

Will jazz appeal to my guest’s tastes?

While no one style of music pleases everyone equally, jazz appeals to the widest range of demographic and age groups, and is the only popular music that can function equally well as both background music and listening music. Jazz’s elegance, flexibility, and wide appeal are unique, and when combined with the fact that you will be treating your guests to some of the greatest jazz artists in the world, they will love it!

Cancellation

What if you have to cancel?

While it is exceedingly rare that I or one of my musicians ever need to cancel an event, there are unforeseen circumstances that could arise:

An extended tour or a concert date at a leading jazz festival under their own name is offered to one of my musicians that conflicts with your date. This is something that is not only rare, but that has plenty of lead time.
An unforeseen accident or illness.

Should one of these two circumstances require the cancellation of one of my musicians, I‘ll offer you a full refund of your deposit or a substitution for the musician in question, your choice.

What if I have to cancel?

Because my musicians and I pride ourselves on our integrity, we count on the same level of integrity from you. The purpose of your deposit is to allow me to request my musicians to turn down counteroffers for your date, including more lucrative counteroffers when they arise. Therefore, refunds of deposits due to cancellations by clients are offered at my discretion in the context of unusual or unforeseen circumstances. Here are three past instances where I've volunteered a refund of the deposit to the client:

An extreme weather event necessitated a cancellation.
A vocalist asked if she could cancel due to being invited to headline at a major jazz festival, and the client did not want to accept a substitute.
News of the 2008 financial crisis that occurred a few days after a client returned a contract and deposit for a party that they could no longer afford to pay for.

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