Each Wednesday, we tackle wedding etiquette. At times, it’s a reader question or one from a colleague, friend or family member and other times we’ll cover a popular issue. (Note: Questions may be edited for clarity and brevity.)
Question: My fiancé and I are having a ceremony and reception at Popp’s Fountain and the Arbor Room at City Park. Since my family is mostly from out of town, we thought it would be fun to hire a brass band to do a second line that leads us out of the reception to the car/parking lot. They have been hired for a 30-minute slot. My question is what is the etiquette for tipping wedding second line bands?
Answer:Tipping can be mystifying, but perhaps never more so than on your wedding day. There are so many vendors involved and while you might be used to tipping your hair stylist or server at a restaurant, knowing innately how much to tip the officiant or whether or not to tip your seamstress is not information most of us have logged in our memory banks. We covered most of it here in an earlier LTEC Weditquette Wednesday post, but didn’t include specifics on a second line (we just said musicians).Generally, you’ll want to plan for a a $20 to $50 tip per band member for a second line band. This is a larger range than what you’d budget for a reception band, for example, due to the fact that they are on the move with the bridal party and guests and there are more logistics involved for the members.
Do you have a solution to share or a wedding etiquette question? Respond in the comments or email Melanie@MyNewOrleans.com.
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