Verve

The Verve Ensemble's explosive talent, seamless transition, and limitless energy have quickly made them one of East Coast Soul's most in-demand ensembles.

Video

East Coast Soul: The Verve Ensemble (Live!)

East Coast Soul: Verve Ensemble – Crazy In Love (Live!)

East Coast Soul: The Verve Ensemble – Levitating (Live!)

East Coast Soul: The Verve Ensemble – Juice (Live!)

Configurations

Check out the multiple, flexible ways to get East Coast Soul involved at your wedding

Ten Piece:	Vocalist	Vocalist	Vocalist	Horn	Horn	Horn	Keys	Bass	Drums	Guitar
Nine Piece:	Vocalist	Vocalist	Vocalist or Horn	Horn	Horn	Keys	Bass	Drums	Guitar
Eight Piece:	Vocalist	Vocalist	Vocalist or Horn	Horn	Keys	Bass	Drums	Guitar
Seven Piece:	Vocalist	Vocalist	Horn	Keys	Bass	Drums	Guitar

Frequently Asked Questions

How do we go about selecting the best configuration for our wedding?

Great question. There’s a few factors that we feel can contribute to the decision of which size ensemble to go with:

Your Vision: We think this is the biggest factor. Essentially, when you envision the band at your wedding, what kind of ensemble are you seeing? Is it bigger, with a bunch of horns and vocalists bouncing around, or is it a little smaller to perhaps align with a tighter venue space, smaller guest list, etc? That should be your first litmus test, and generally can provide some initial benchmarks to compare against.
Your Budget: We sometimes say that’s it’s not about the money, but it’s not *not* about the money, haha — budget is an unavoidable decision-making factor, and the size of the ensemble is one of the biggest aspects in terms of price. Comparing your budget against our pricing, keeping in mind the potential for travel and ceremony charges and travel, is not a bad idea. Though we can also say, your guests will remember us a lot more than they’ll remember your flowers, lolz
Your Guest List (?): We actually find that guest list size isn’t, or doesn’t have to be, a huge factor in terms of ensemble size. We’ve carried out performances for some of our smallest guest counts with some of our largest ensemble configurations (a ten piece ensemble for a 40 person wedding — yep, that happened! Haha). Likewise, some of our largest audiences were juxtaposed with our smaller/smallest configurations (college festival with a smaller budget – 2,500 kids in attendance, and a seven-piece ensemble!). So we generally don’t recommend this be your primary decision-making factor. That said, at the extremes we just mentioned, it can feel a little “top-heavy”, haha — feel free to ask us about this if you have any questions!

Some other information for you to consider:

Our eight-piece ensemble tends to be our most utilized ensemble configuration. We find this tends to be a nice sweet spot in terms of space, ensemble size, and budget. The option for three vocalists also allows sharing of lead singer duties, which translates to the need for shorter break(s) — always a good thing. If you’re not sure where to start in terms of band size, start here, and see how things line up for you.
We can also book the smaller/smallest ensemble you’re considering right now, and add musicians later. It’s true. If you’re considering the nine or ten piece, for example, we can lock in nine pieces now, let your budget and other decisions take shape, then revisit the idea of adding a musician closer to your date. If you’ve got the bandwidth, great! If not, you know you’ve got a killer ensemble lined up already.
All our ensembles sizes kick ass. Don’t worry if your budget or preferences is leading you towards a smaller ensemble size. Nothing is lost in terms of dance-ability, fullness of sound, etc. Each configuration is tried and true, and all have been a part of absolutely epic dance parties. You’re in great hands regardless of the number of musicians, so don’t hesitate to be conservative here. We can always revisit the idea of more players later, and either way, you’ve got an incredible ensemble lined up! The other thing to consider, is that your guests won’t be aware that there was an option between 8, 9, or 10 pieces. All they’ll see upon arrival is a kickass band or probably at *least* seven or eight pieces, which will probably be bigger than most of the bands you’d see out and about anyways!

What is the instrumental configuration of each ensemble size?

Great question. We have our most common configuration suggestions listed below:

Seven Piece:
- Two Vocalists
- One Horn
- *Four Piece Rhythm Section
Eight Piece:
- Two to Three Vocalists
- One to Two Horns
- *Four Piece Rhythm Section
Nine Piece:
- Two to Three Vocalists
- Two to Three Horns
- *Four Piece Rhythm Section
Ten Piece:
- Three Vocalists
- Three Horns
- *Four Piece Rhythm Section

The ranges here are designed to show that each ensemble can alter its configuration slightly depending on your personal preference. However, it’s important to note that we do firm this up in our potential contract, so there won’t be any grey area once we hit the potential stage of locking things in.

The reason for this: some folks are particularly excited about horns/brass arrangements, while others are particularly excited for vocal harmony, and the energy that multiple singers can bring. All options represent powerhouse configurations that will deliver an epic performance!

*Follow up question: “What is a rhythm section?” In East Coast Soul, we refer to the rhythm section as bass, drums, keys and guitar. In general, we strongly recommend all four of these pieces be in place for any given performance. Bass and drums together represent the foundation of the sound, with keys and guitar working together to fill up the sonic space, play signature parts, support horn lines, etc. Removing one of these is an option in the most extreme situations of limited space, budgets, etc. but is something we recommend against if at all possible.

How much space do you need for the stage area?

This is a very common question/concern. However, we’ve found that East Coast Soul is more comfortable squishing larger numbers of musicians into a smaller area that you might think possible. Generally we find the following (rectangular) stage areas are a good place to start the stage plot process, but we are flexible on this:

18 ft² to 24 ft² per band member
140 ft² to 240 ft² for the whole band

That leaves you with anywhere from 10 ft. by 14 ft. to 12 ft by 20 ft. area, depending on the ensemble. This is more of a rough guideline, but nonetheless, here’s a rundown of each ensemble’s recommended sizes:

10 Pieces:
- Minimum: 10 ft. 𝗫 18 ft.
- Preferred: 12 ft. 𝗫 20 ft.
9 Pieces:
- Minimum: 10 ft. 𝗫 16 ft.
- Preferred: 12 ft. 𝗫 18 ft.
7/8 Pieces:
- Minimum: 10 ft. 𝗫 14 ft.
- Preferred: 12 ft. 𝗫 16 ft.

Note: the seven and eight piece stage areas are roughly the same, since the presence or lack of an additional horn player or singer won’t change the footprint significantly

Testimonials

Our clients say it better than we ever could. Check out our most recent testimonials below.

"I could legitimately talk all night about how obsessed I am with East Coast Soul. They were our dream wedding band!! As a couple who loves music and cared a lot about our wedding entertainment, we could not have picked a better band than ECS. First of all, their managers (Art and Sean) are top notch - excellent communicators, very transparent, flexible, available. They made our entire 18-month planning process a breeze. Second of all, the information-gathering they do is incredible, and for those who are Type A planners, ensures that every moment of the night will run smoothly. Third of all, the MUSICIANS!! My goodness they are talented...they kept our 175-person crowd on the dancefloor ALL NIGHT. Motown, soul, funk, top hits, throwbacks - you name it, they nailed it. They even did an encore song after the wedding technically ended because no one wanted to leave the venue!! I'm already dreaming up the next event I need a band for so I can use ECS again...love you guys!"

Ariel (Bride)

Manchester, VT

September 17, 2022

"THIS IS THE MOST AMAZING BAND, EVER. We felt comfortable hiring them for our wedding based on their glowing reviews but were even more blown away with them on our wedding day. I have never attended a wedding where almost every guest was on the dance floor the entire night. Not to mention, we had a 180 person wedding and the dance floor overflowed so people were dancing elsewhere in the tent because the band was so great. Art and Sean made the whole process easy and seamless from the beginning and really worked with us to ensure our night was perfect, answering many of our questions and being so flexible when we had to reschedule our wedding due to the pandemic. We had MANY wedding guests reach out to us afterwards saying ECS was the best band they have ever heard and they either wish they had a band like ECS for their wedding or will be hiring ECS for future events. I cannot recommend ECS enough. They made our wedding the most perfect night, ever."

Sarah (Bride)

Bristol, RI

October 16, 2021

"Describing ECS as incredible would be an understatement! Prior to the wedding, they were helpful/responsive in outlining logistics and developing our agenda for the reception, and throughout the planning process they were remarkably responsive to questions and issues that emerged (much appreciated during COVID uncertainty). As great as they were prior the wedding, the real magic was on the day of. They did a great job providing background music for the ceremony before absolutely blowing us away at the reception. Not only did the band sound amazing, but they put on an unbelievable performance - shock and awe among our guests. Music Quality: A+ "Dancability": A+ Performance: A+ As we were going through our wedding pictures, we came across a panoramic that showed every single guest having a blast on the dance floor - if that's what you're looking for, then this is the band for you."

Braden (Groom)

Kennebunkport, ME

July 31, 2021

"Jumping in on these stellar reviews. Cannot imagine a better band! The talent, the energy., the performance ... they bring it all. The guests LOVED them and were dancing all night... and the professionalism and attention to detail leading up to the event cannot be beat. This is THE BAND!"

Debbie (Bride)

York, ME

July 31, 2021

"East Coast Soul is awesome! I have been to many weddings with great bands, an East Coast Soul is unequivocally the best I have ever seen. I lost count of the number of people that came up to me during our wedding and in the days that followed to say: "they were the best wedding band I have ever heard." Our friends and family love to dance and have a good time, and East Coast Soul provided four hours of non-stop entertainment. Working with the band was quite easy: they are exceptionally well organized and make sure they are on the same page as you weeks before the big day. After filling out their survey, the band clearly totally understood the vibe we are looking for at the wedding, and even made suggestions of additional songs/artists to include that fit exactly with the kind of music we wanted. I cannot describe how comforting it was to be sure the band understood what we were shooting for. By the time the wedding rolled around, we had very high expectations given how great the band had been to work with, and then they blew our expectations out of the water! The dance floor was absolutely full from the opening song (Hold On, I'm Comin' by Sam and Dave) until the last song (Shout) four hours later. Amazing band, extremely versatile. Would recommend to anyone."

Charles (Groom)

Bolton, MA

August 3, 2019

"The BEST wedding band! Not only was the performance truly incredible - they were also super professional and easy to work with. WORTH EVERY PENNY! We had seen a different East Coast Soul ensemble the year prior and made it a priority for our wedding plans. We booked a different ensemble with East Coast Soul than what we had seen before but it didn't matter - they both were OUTSTANDING. The song list to the skill of the performers really exceeded all expectations. People are still talking about how incredible this band was."

Canice (Bride)

New Gloucester, ME

July 6, 2019

"ECS played our wedding in July, and they were unbelievable. Sean and Art were great in the months leading up to the wedding, always responded promptly and professionally, and answered all of our questions. The performance itself was absolutely awesome - we and our guests were blown away at the quality of the music and the energy of all the players. I highly recommend the full 10 piece band! All in all, ECS was probably the single best decision we made in the process of planning the wedding. They knocked it out of the park! "

Nicholas (Groom)

Portsmouth, RI

July 29, 2018

"As we were planning our Newport wedding over the last year, we knew that the band was the priority! Every memorable wedding we had been to were always the best dance parties and we knew we had friends and family that brought the energy! Needless to say we had very high expectations for our band. After hearing ECS at a Newport wedding two winters ago, we knew they were for us. Not only are they professional, responsive, and diligent in the planning process, but they are so much FUN night of. They are performers in every way and brought the exact energy that we had been after. Our guests and us loved loved loved every song and frankly did not want them to stop. We cannot thank them/you enough for the best party of our lives. We will certainly be reliving their songs and music for quite some time! "