URE Events | Wedding Music, Planning, & More

Celebrate with Music, Planning, & More

The Complete Package ... “As an event counseling agency we help plan the timeline, coordinate the vendors, and organize all parties involved,” says Leandro (Leo) Maia, founder of URE Events. “We also offer our own entertainment, photography, photo booth services, and more, which we coordinate with any other vendors.”

They spend time interviewing the bride and groom to understand their ideas and get any pictures or videos of what they like. “It helps guide us and helps us understand how elaborate they want to go. We then create a theme and design their ballroom with an eye towards interior decorating, dressing it up with pipes and drapes, skirts from the ceiling, uplighting, or anything they want. We’ll also counsel them in picking the type of venue, or having an outdoor event.”

Your Ceremony, Music, & First Dance ... Leo tells us that many brides want a new feel for their ceremony. “They don’t want traditional Beethoven or the bridal march, so we include songs from new artists, such as Jason Mraz, Bruno Mars, and The Weeknd. We have those tracks in violin versions that we can use during the prelude. As we make their playlist with the wedding couple, we get a feel for them and then we can offer suggestions for the ceremony, based on who they are.”

One recent couple, Cathy and Jason, had a destination wedding in Mexico and Leo and his team handled everything. “They initially wanted contemporary songs in their original version. But I suggested an instrumental version of their songs, which gave them what they wanted while also making their music unique.”

Ninety percent of couples have chosen the song for their first dance beforehand. “They know what they want, but may feel uncomfortable dancing for a whole three or four-minute song. So we might suggest they dance the first chorus and first verse, then invite their guests to join in. It’s a great way to break the ice for the evening and it also lets us see if it’s a dancing crowd or if we’re going to have the MC be slightly more interactive. That first dance can help us make many decisions.”

Split-Second Lighting ... Louis and Nicole had a very unusual first dance request for their tented wedding in a mansion in upstate NY. “They wanted a six-minute song for their first dance, which is extremely rare. I thought they’d feel awkward dancing for so long, but they said they’d be happy doing it as long as the lighting kept changing to match the song.

“They brought the idea to other production companies and were told it was too complicated, since it required control of the lighting down to the second. But they really wanted to do this! We said okay and we were happy to do it. We’re always open to what the bride and groom want and love entertaining new ideas.”

The song started off like it was midnight. “We lit up the tent in all blue and projected a monogrammed star with a quarter moon in the far left of the tent. As the song progressed, it mentions moonlight fading to morning. They requested that the tent change to a sort of amber with bright yellow in the corner mimicking the sun. We did it all!”

Winter Wonderlands, Floral Treasures, & More ... “Some venues offer all services and some do not, so sometimes we bring in vendors for tables, chairs, linens, or vases. We’ll transform the ballroom for our couples, creating winter wonderlands, personalized monograms, and floral themes. For some weddings, we’ve brought in hundreds of florals and even had vines coming down the walls. One bride wanted crystal furniture, so we got crystal tables, chairs, and chandeliers.

“Some couples have asked for something totally different than a catered venue. So for them we might rent a mansion or a loft and then we need everything — lights, décor, tables, chairs, even a dance floor.”

They did a destination wedding at the Hard Rock Café in Mexico for Melanie and Chris, who wanted an all-inclusive resort. “We helped them narrow their search, and since I had been to the Hard Rock in Mexico, I told them about their great service.”

Leo and his team were there for four days, helping with the rehearsal dinner, explaining what the bridesmaids and groomsmen would do for the ceremony, and coordinating with the venue. “The day of the wedding it started raining and we had to postpone the event for an hour, but we knew that rain showers come and go in the Caribbean, and we worked with the venue and everyone else to make sure the wedding celebration continued.

“The most exciting thing about the process,” says Leo, who got into the business as a teenager, “is to see a couple come in with a special idea.

“They don’t know if it can be done, but they’ve dreamed about it and that’s what they want for their wedding. We’re always 100 percent behind them, collaborating with venues, other vendors, florists, and photographers, to make it happen exactly as they wanted, even down to a special cake topper. The joy on their faces the day of the wedding, as they realize their dream has become a reality, is why we do this!”

URE Events, 718.808.5919, info@ureevents.com, www.ureevents.com