Top 5 Entertainment Ideas For A Summer Garden Party

Top 5 Entertainment Ideas For A Summer Garden Party

Party Entertainment Ideas!

If the weather holds out this summer, you might be considering a traditional garden party. Alive Network has put together its top 5 list of summer garden party entertainment ideas.

If the weather holds out this summer, you might be considering a traditional garden party. Alive Network has put together its top 5 list of summer garden party entertainment ideas.

Dixieland Jazz band for a Summer Garden Party

1. Jazz Duo or Dixieland Jazz Bands

Bring the heady sound of New Orleans to your party with a stomping, walk-about Dixieland Jazz band. Ideal due to the “un-amplified” instruments used (i.e., they won’t need electricity). Dixie is up-tempo, fun, and guaranteed to make you smile!

Prices start from £421. View all Dixieland Jazz Bands >

For something with vocals and a touch of the familiar, how about a Swing Jazz band - often playing Rat Pack, Sinatra, Michael Bublé and Jamie Cullem. Unlike a Dixie band, they will need electricity for their amplification, but they can tone the volume to suit a garden party just fine.

Prices start from £211 for a solo singer. View all Swing Jazz Bands here >
Strapped for space? Try one of our fantastic Jazz Duos – playing a wide variety of jazz music and usually some pop as well. A duo is the easiest type of act to accommodate and makes more of a visual statement than a solo artist alone.

Prices start from £198. View all jazz duos here >

  • Burgundy Boater Band Jazz Band Hampshire

    Burgundy Boater Band

    5 stars - Burgundy Boater Band are Highly Recommended 46 Jazz Bands Hampshire

    Burgundy Boater Band are an experienced, professional, traditional jazz quartet providing music for any occasion. Their tunes, jazz, ballads and 1920’s pop songs have a beginning, middle and, end which most people like.
    Price from £659

  • The Storyville Strutters Jazz Band London

    The Storyville Strutters

    5 stars - The Storyville Strutters are Highly Recommended 25 Jazz Bands London

    A highly trained & experienced group of musicians specialising in traditional New Orleans (Dixieland) style Jazz. From a trio play low key background music to a full band perfect for dancing, The Storyville Strutters can cater for all events!
    Price from £1,078

  • All That Jazz Jazz Band South Yorkshire

    All That Jazz

    5 stars - All That Jazz are Highly Recommended 111 Jazz Bands South Yorkshire

    EXCLUSIVE TO ALIVE NETWORK - All That Jazz is a versatile collection of the country's finest young Jazz musicians. They are available in a range of ensemble formats, including duo, trio, quartet and quintet, with male & female musicians.
    Price from £784

  • Paris Swing Rock n Roll Swing Band Leicestershire

    Paris Swing

    5 stars - Paris Swing are Highly Recommended 14 Swing, Jive & Rock n Roll Leicestershire

    Featuring one of the UK's most respected acoustic guitarists & an award winning violinist, Paris Swing are an instrumental duo who's live performances will make your event unique & unforgettable. Fusing a mixture of styles from Classical, Latin & Jazz, Paris Swing can tailor their repertoire to perfectly accompany any occasion.
    Price from £702

2. Steel Drum Bands

Steel drum band music stems from the Caribbean with a mixture of Calypso, Latin, Reggae, Pop, and Rock n’ Roll. Steel bands bring the Caribbean to your doorstep!

Prices start from £607. View our steel drum bands here >

  • TNT Steel Combo Steel Band London

    TNT Steel Combo

    5 stars - TNT Steel Combo are Highly Recommended 8 Steel Bands London

    TNT Steel Combo‘s roots lead directly to such tropical islands as Barbados, Jamaica & Trinidad- the home of the steel pan! Even after 20 years, this excellent group cater for all occasions, available in many shapes & sizes offering elements of both traditional Caribbean and modern pop repertoires!
    Price from £784

  • Rhythm Xpress Latin, Salsa or Cuban Band London

    Rhythm Xpress

    5 stars - Rhythm Xpress are Highly Recommended 3 Latin, Salsa & World Music London

    Rhythm Xpress are a fantastic 7 piece band who perform a vast array of genres, from Caribbean reggae, calypso and soca to Motown, pop, R&B and soul all up to the present day.
    Price from £1,960
Summer Garden Party String Quartet

3. String Quartets

Traditionally, a string quartet gives recitals of works by the classical masters, but more recently has diversified into a more popular repertoire which includes pop, jazz, folk and ragtime. String quartets are ideal for summer garden parties. As they are generally acoustic (they require no amplification or electricity), they are portable and can change location during your event.

Prices start from £496. View our string quartets here >

  • City String Trio String Quartet London

    City String Trio

    5 stars - City String Trio are Highly Recommended 119 String Quartets London

    Brilliant violin, viola and cello string trio combining classical with contemporary music, from Bach to Bridgerton. Based in London, their smaller ensemble size means they are perfect for petite budgets and venue spaces!
    Price from £536

  • The Lancashire String Quartet String Quartet Lancashire

    The Lancashire String Quartet

    5 stars - The Lancashire String Quartet are Highly Recommended 52 String Quartets Lancashire

    Offering a professional service, tailored to suit your needs with a wide variety of repertoire including Classical, Bollywood, Jazz, Pop & Traditional. The Lancashire String Quartet specialise in the provision of high quality live music for all events.
    Price from £711

  • Adelaide Quartet String Quartet Surrey

    Adelaide Quartet

    5 stars - Adelaide Quartet are Highly Recommended 29 String Quartets Surrey

    A young, professional string quartet who have all studied at The Royal College of Music in London. They provide music for weddings, celebrations & corporate events, drawing on an extensive repertoire which can be tailored to suit any occasion.
    Price from £640

  • Calithea String Quartet String Quartet London

    Calithea String Quartet

    5 stars - Calithea String Quartet are Highly Recommended 44 String Quartets London

    Calithea String Quartet will transform any event into a spectacular occasion with a varied repertoire of Classical, Pop, Jazz & more! Members of the quartet have been educated in the highest institutions & have performed with many celebrity names.
    Price from £877

  • The Rose String Quartet String Quartet Hertfordshire

    The Rose String Quartet

    5 stars - The Rose String Quartet are Highly Recommended 51 String Quartets Hertfordshire

    Rose Quartet are a highly professional, all female contemporary quartet. Their huge repertoire includes pop music & jazz, light classical, show songs, Bollywood favourites and traditional sing-a-long tunes & Christmas carols. Perfect for weddings, corporate events & parties.
    Price from £863
Giant games for Summer Garden Party's

4. Outdoor Games and Kids Entertainment

Whether it's Giant Jenga, Giant Wii Sport, Giant Table Football or Giant Operation - Giant Games is the fun way to enhance your big event with a fantastic range of games for all ages!

Prices start from £240. View our giant games here >

  • Nintendo Wii Console Giant and Outdoor Games Lincolnshire

    Nintendo Wii Console

    5 stars - Nintendo Wii Console are Highly Recommended 2 Lincolnshire

    This is the game of the moment! Nintendo have revolutionised computer game play and we have them available for hire.
    Price from £618

  • Giant Scalextric Giant and Outdoor Games Lincolnshire

    Giant Scalextric

    5 stars - Giant Scalextric are Highly Recommended 2 Lincolnshire

    Our Giant Scalextric circuits can accommodate any number of people and provide a highly visual, interactive and enjoyable activity.
    Price from £1,324
Brazzilian Carnival dancers for Summer Garden Party's

5. Latin / Salsa Bands

For a lively garden party with plenty of dancing, a Salsa band is the ideal addition. Salsa encompasses a variety of rhythmic styles and musical forms. Think Rio Carnival, the Caribbean, South America and Latin Jazz. With Salsa music, the rhythm is infectious and the costumes colourful. Many acts can also include Salsa dance instruction as part of their package.

Prices start from £322. View our latin and salsa bands here >

  • Luxury Brazilian Samba Dancers Dancer London

    Luxury Brazilian Samba Dancers

    5 stars - Luxury Brazilian Samba Dancers are Highly Recommended 4 Dancers London

    The premium Samba and Brazilian dance company in the UK. With the most exciting, electric performance, paired with the most exclusive and elaborate samba costumes; Luxury Brazilian Samba Dancers will get your party started- Rio style! Previous clients include: BBC The One Show, Take That, Selfridges, Mastercard, Chelsea FC & many more!
    Price from £653

  • Brazilian Carnival Dancers Dancer London

    Brazilian Carnival Dancers

    5 stars - Brazilian Carnival Dancers are Highly Recommended 10 Dancers London

    With spectacular costumes & choreographed routines, our Multi Award Winning Brazilian Carnival Dancers will create an authentic Brazilian dance experience which will dazzle your guests!
    Price from £601

  • Latamba Show Band Latin, Salsa or Cuban Band London

    Latamba Show Band

    5 stars - Latamba Show Band are Highly Recommended 50 Latin, Salsa & World Music London

    Latamba are a London based, Multi-Award winning Brazilian Show Band available in different format and line-ups. A visually eye-catching show presentation!
    Price from £2,614

A few things to consider when organising entertainment for a summer garden party

Electricity – some acts don’t need electricity as they play acoustic instruments, and are therefore easier to move around the garden. Any act with vocals, electric guitars or keyboards will need electricity and you’ll need to ensure a safe supply.

Cover – in case of bad weather (or even in case of full sun) most musical acts will need a provision of cover such as a gazebo or marquee.

Noise – make sure you warn the neighbours if you book a band later in the evening, as you won’t want the police turning up and dampening the mood.

Lawn Protection – as the musicians will likely be moving around on one small spot of garden, if the ground is at all damp it would be wise to cover the lawn in that area. A ground sheet would be fine, but even better, you can buy “ground protection mats” from places like Homebase. For a small band you’ll need to cover roughly 3 x 3 metres.

Photos by: Pexels