Celebration

Best of Weddings (4x)

1100 Cutspring Rd, Stratford, CT

About this vendor

“Music done right" and dedication to personal service has made Celebration one of the area’s premier bands since 1985. With dynamic male & female vocalists, hot horns and the "big groove" rhythm section playing the hits from 6 decades, Celebration will make your special day the party of a lifetime!

Details

Instruments

Guitar
Keyboard
Percussion
Saxophone
Trumpet
Vocals

Music Genres

Latin

Music Services

Live Music
MC Services
Sound Equipment

Wedding Activities

Rehearsals & Parties
After Party
Wedding
After Party
Reception

Awards and Affiliations

5

out of 5.0

23 reviews

Search reviews

11/06/2012 • Michelle M

Leigh was a great person to work with when planning the music for our wedding. He took the time to come meet with us and discuss the layout of the whole night as well as having the band learn the songs for our first dance, father/daugther and mother/son. When our wedding day came the band was unbelieveable, we had them play during our cocktail our and then during the reception they got everyone involved. Leigh came out into the crowd, they took song requests form the guests and helped announce our introductions. We are still getting compliments from people about the band! Thanks Celebration!

11/03/2012 • Kelly M

Celebration played at my wedding and my husband and I could not have been happier with out decision to go with this band. Leigh was so easy to work with and they played all of the songs we had requested. They kept the music going all night long and the dance floor was never empty. They were very energetic and joined in on the fun coming right out to the dance floor to play or sing. When we see our wedding guests they still rave about how great the band was. I'm not just saying this because it was my own wedding, but this was the most fun I have ever had at a wedding.

10/28/2012 • Alex D

I've known Leigh from Celebration since I had the grand fortune of being put into a class with one of his sons in fourth grade. A huge part of the reason I went into music was his influence, and I'm forever grateful of that. The very first time I saw Celebration (on the Huntington, CT town green) I thought "Man, if I ever get married, which is SO FAR from now, I am totally getting Celebration to play my wedding." Fast-forward more than a decade, I found the girl, bought the ring, asked for her hand, and found myself in the position of being able to finally ask Celebration to be a part of the happiest day of my life. My wife basically bequeathed this one planning detail to me (while in true Wonder Woman fashion, she took over the rest), and was happy to let me choose without any intervention, but even then, from the first meeting we had with Leigh to go over details, she was sold. The planning process was dead simple - we exchanged a few emails, talked price once or twice, talked song list and ceremony music, and over the course of probably a handful of conversations, we were ready to go. Couldn't be simpler. Leigh gets it. He worked with me to get details down, asked them once, and never bothered me on the day of. It was the smoothest planning process, I'd surmise, of all time. Let's be perfectly clear here - I went to school for music, I've played music all my life, and I'm a total snob for live performance. The vast majority of my friends share at least two of the three of those characteristics. We're incredibly pretentious and highly critical of any musicians just due to our proximity to the craft. And let me tell you, it's been nearly five months since our wedding, and to this day, I still get random outbursts from people of "Man... that wedding band you had! They were incredible!" From a sheer musicianship standpoint, Celebration is tops. There's a statistic in baseball called WAR that measures how many wins a team gains by having a certain player on their roster. Celebration is full of high-WAR performers. All-stars. Masters at their craft. I can say with full sincerity that while our day would have been magical on its own with any run-of-the-mill band, Celebration completely threw out run-of-the-mill and kicked it into full overdrive. Every family member I have has said our wedding was the most entertaining event they'd ever been to. People were on the dance floor for four hours - non-stop. No breaks. We had talked over a basic idea of set-list, and named some specific songs we definitely wanted to hear, and with that limited information they chained together an absolutely perfect set. They read the crowd like an English professor reading Dickens. They didn't play a single dud. I saw family who never dance moving around and screaming along with James Brown, not once, not twice, but for hours. They don't just play it - they perform it. They make the party part of it. I've had the pleasure of dealing with a lot of musicians, both good and bad, in my time in the industry. I've seen both lows and highs in professionalism, talent, performance, and just sheer willingness to make an event truly special. Celebration blows away every single other group I've worked with. If you can only make one decision on your wedding, decide to go with Celebration for your band, and just sit back and watch as they make your wedding memorable not just for you, but for everyone joining you on your special day.

10/19/2012 • Karin A

I cannot say enough about Leigh and the band Celebration! Since our wedding, we have received so many compliments and everyone tells us that Celebration is the best band they have ever heard at a wedding. The dance floor was packed from the beginning of the night until the very end. They learned a few special requests (and played each one perfectly!), and their energy was incredible. Leigh was great at communicating, planning, and even helping me think through the little details of the reception. Their experience shows, and the evening was flawless. We are so happy with our choice to have Celebration at our wedding, and we would highly recommend them!

10/08/2012 • Jen M

Leigh Henry and his band Celebration played out our wedding this summer. They are amazing. The music and energy are great. The dance floor was overflowing the entire night, without a single lull. There was good variety of the music, and many many many happy (and raving-about-the-band) guests. I highly recommend them. We were thrilled.

6/19/2012 • Kate B

My husband and I were adament about having a band at our wedding and were so fortunate to find Leigh and The Celebration Band! I cannot say enough about how wonderful the process was--from our first contact with Leigh planning the day until he was packing up his equipment post wedding at my parent's house. Leigh was extremely thorough, organized and helpful. He obviously has been in the business for a long time and it shows! Our guests (from 1 years old to 85 plus) all enjoyed themselves....and we have pictures to prove it! The dance floor was never empty and after the band had played for over five hours we had to kick people out! Everyone kept saying "Where did you find this band!?!" We would recommend Leigh to any bride and groom. He made our day so special!

6/14/2012 • Amanda I

My husband and I were so excited for the band, and they were beyond wonderful! Leigh was thorough and easy to work with. He made sure he knew what type of a wedding we wanted, and he made sure all of the details were in line. He allowed us to choose songs we would like the band to play, and he even downloaded many of my eclectic DJ requests. Celebration played in full force and had everyone dancing! Their renditions are energetic and sound great! Celebration also played at my sister's wedding in 2003. I cannot express how pleased we are with our musical choice- I highly recommend Celebration for all weddings!

6/01/2012 • Chris G

Leigh and the entire group of Celebration are a class act! From pre-planning to the event itself, Celebration ensures the wedding will be a success and fun for everyone. What sets them apart from many other wedding bands we have heard is not that Celebration plays such a wide variety of music, but rather that they play such a wide variety of music so well. It may not be as inexpensive as a DJ for a wedding, but with Celebration, you will agree that they are worth every penny. I strongly recommend considering Celebration for your next event! You won’t regret it!

10/31/2011 • Oran W

Celebration played our wedding a few weeks ago and were amazing. Right from the start, Leigh was great to work with, very organized, and highly accessible. Neither myself or my wife had seen the band before we chose them, but enough of our friends reccomended them and they did not disapoint. They followed the schedule we discussed, learned the few specific songs we requested (including a few traditional irish songs) and kept the party moving. They played old stuff, new stuff, and just the right amount of slow songs. Everyone, from the young guests to the old could not believe how good they were. I honestly can not recomend this band enough. If you're looking for band, this is it. Don't think about it, just book them.

10/28/2011 • Susanne H

Leigh was really easy to work with, not only the day of our wedding, but weeks before when were figuring out the setlist. He asked us a few simple questions about our likes and dislikes and was able to create a great selection of music for our guests. This was really important to us since we wanted to please all of guests (young and old). I highly recommend paying the additional money for two musicians to provide light background music during the cocktail hour, it was totally worth it. As for the main performance, Leigh and the band had a ton of energy. True to his word, they knew how to work the crowd. I was shocked how many people came up to us throughout the evening to say "where did you guys find this amazing band?" All in all, a great evening, a great band, and a great decision to go with Celebration. I highly recommend them for your wedding.

10/26/2011 • Marianne S

Celebration…the name speaks for itself. Another word to decribe this band...phenomenal! Our wedding and the reception could not have been a more perfect celebration. Leigh and the band kept the party in high gear from the moment he introduced us to our departure under a canopy of sparklers as they played, “When the Saints Go Marching In.” The music, vocalists and enthusiasm was nonstop. We chose Celine’s song, “Have You Ever Been in Love” for our first dance. It was hard to believe Celine was there in person! Every time we speak to our guests, the words are the same. “Your band was fabulous and the selection of songs had everyone dancing the night away. This was the best wedding we ever attended.” The range of Celebration's talent is incredible. Two of the musicians played as our guests arrived and during the wedding ceremony. They played classical music flawlessly, which made for a very beautiful and moving ceremony. An hour later, they switched gears, joined the full band and helped us party. Leigh was a sheer delight to work with; not a single detail was overlooked in the planning. Selecting Celebration was the best decision we made. Thank you, thank you, thank you….. Bob and Marianne

10/20/2011 • Chris L

From the moment we contacted Leigh Henry to discuss hiring his Celebration Band, we had the best possible experience. His advice when planning our reception was more helpful than our site coordinator (who was still pretty great). Leigh's advice on the timing and sequence of the reception was spot-on, and turned out to provide a party that was beyond our wildest dreams. From the quiet music that accompanied dinner to the building energy throughout the dancing portion of the reception... the music was expertly selected and presented. Their song list is remarkable, with an incredible variation of genres and "feels". The band truly did react to the mood of the reception as it progressed. The songs that played during the father-bride and mother-groom dance, as well as the other ceremonial aspects of the reception, were very touching and emotionally played. But once it was time to dance, Celebration really shined. They gave everyone time to eat dinner, have some cocktails, get through the ceremonial portion of the night... then they blew the roof off the party. We had a fairly long reception, but once people were on the dance floor, Celebration simply didn't give them a chance to sit back down. The night ended with high-energy, enthusiastic renditions of some true classics. By the end of the night, Celebration had every single person at our reception on the dance floor - singing, jumping and dancing. I promise you, nobody wanted to leave when our time was up. Sure I'm biased, but a lot of people made a point of telling me Celebration was the best wedding band they'd ever heard. I can't agree more. Celebration is a very talented group of musicians, able to handle a very wide variety of music genres. We tested them with everything from contemporary pop and dance... all the way back to oldies, funk and hits of the 80's. They handled every song perfectly. They all had a very animated presence, and performed each song terrificly. Our site presented some challenges, but the band took it all in stride and managed to set-up and perform without a hitch. We never even knew they had to deal with some specifics that made their move-in and set-up a challenge. They figured out how to work within what they had, and we never had an ounce of worry. What really made our night special was that Celebration was able to learn a song - not one that any of them could possibly have ever heard before - on relatively short notice. They even figured out a way to arrange their horn section into the song, which actually made their version sound better than the original! On top of all that, they worked around the fact that I wanted to sing the song. Despite the fact we never rehearsed, they learned the song on short notice, and it was a song they'd never heard... it turned out perfectly. It was an incredible moment my wife and I will never forget... and not many bands could have pulled it off. If you want to have an amazing ceremony... with a band leader who knows what he's doing... a band that can handle just about any music... and which knows how to start, carry and finish a perfect reception... ...then Celebration's your band. Please do not hesitate to contact me for a reference on Celebration if this review isn't sufficient to convince you they are an absolute gem. My e-mail address is jclong@gmail.com. I simply cannot recommend Celebration enough. -J.C. Long Minneapolis, MN

10/17/2011 • Holly L

Nothing but the best! Celebration was amazing at my wedding! From the moment my husband and I stepped into the room, and the music began, no one sat down!! Just simply amazing, couldn't be happier :) Still hearing all the wonderful praises from friends and family in regards to Celebration. Great people to work with, Leigh is a wonderful guy and really knows his stuff. Use Them!!!

9/05/2011 • Kevin J

My wife and I had such a great time at our wedding thanks to Celebration. So much of that was due to their ability to get people on the dance floor and feel the pace of the evening. We had their 9 piece band play and we were blown away with their professionalism and their musical ability. My wife and I both come from musical backgrounds, as do many of our friends and everyone was impressed with how good the entire band was. In addition, they were easy to work with throughout the entire process, from working with our song selections to working with my brother-in-law to perform an original rap. The one thing that was consistent across all of our guests and was repeated to us countless times was that the band was awesome. They did a fantastic job and we would gladly recommend them to anyone. They helped make our wedding memorable and fun and we greatly appreciated all of their hard work.

3/31/2011 • Sarah H

op-notch, 5-star, dance-til-you-drop BEST band out there! Leigh Henry and his band Celebration are truly OUTSTANDING! The music at our wedding was almost more important to me than any other aspect - I really believe that music makes or breaks a party. Celebration MADE our wedding reception! Not only is the band tight, professional, and exceptionally talented, they're able to anticipate the crowd and segue seamlessly from song to song. The horns, piano, drums, guitar and vocals are KNOCK OUT! Our wedding was in September 2010 and our guests are still raving about the music. Everyone, young and old alike, danced the night away! We heard things from people like, "my husband hasn't danced like that since our wedding 35 years ago!" At one point during the reception, we looked out and saw a crowd of neighborhood kids gathered on a lawn across from the venue dancing like crazy! The music was that infectious! In addition to all this, Leigh Henry is a true pleasure to work with. He spent so much time with us, patiently answering questions and explaining various options, and that was before we'd even booked the band. Closer to the wedding, we met again and he spent a great deal of time going over every detail. Not only is Leigh a true professional, he's a true performer, dazzling the crowd with his incredible voice, moving out into the audience and dancing - an amazing entertainer! Look no further: Celebration creates the wedding reception dreams are made of!

2/26/2011 • Jessica B

Leigh Henry's Celebration band did a wonderful job for our wedding. We received so many compliments on the band and no one wanted to stop dancing. Leigh was very easy to work with and let us choose exactly which songs we wanted to hear on our wedding day. We would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a great wedding band!

2/23/2011 • Emery K

I used Celebration! headed by Leigh Henry for my wedding reception and ceremony. Great music, great arrangements, great musicians, worked well with the catering hall, and was flexible with last minute changes. They have a large repertoire and are professionally run. Highly recommended.

2/22/2011 • Kate S

I cannot say enough good things about Celebration. I have to admit that we were initially afraid about hiring a band. How do you know if they are any good? How can you be sure that they won't be too loud, or too cheesy, or just plain bad? Trust me- if you are looking for the perfect band, look no further than Celebration. From the beginning, the band was extremely professional. They worked to incorporate the sound we wanted and the songs we wanted. They moved flawlessly between songs, and many of our guests were amazed when they were playing that they weren't the original recording. Our families love to dance, and everyone was on the dance floor the whole night. When I think of my wedding, what I remember most was how much fun we all had together. Leigh Henry, the leader of the band, helped our reception move along perfectly and orchestrated all the details about first dance, parent/child dances, and cutting of the cake without losing the energy of the guests. It was the most amazing night, and there are so many songs I hear now that cause me to flashback to the dance floor that night. We were so happy we chose Celebration! And they were so flexible- even offering to stay longer at the reception because everyone was having so much fun. This band worked within our budget, was extremely professional, and sounded great. CHOOSE CELEBRATION!!!

2/22/2011 • mae m

One performance by Celebration convinced us that Leigh and his very talented musicians, including singers, was the perfect entertainers for our special event, the wedding of our son to his lovely bride. Leigh did not disappoint us; our guests had a terrific time listening and dancing to Celebration's extensive collection of music - they can perform almost anything, but with an up-to-date flair. And the volume is just right, not overbearing! The entertainment is so important in making or breaking an event such as a wedding. We could not have been more pleased, and we're very selective with whom we work with. A+++ for Leigh and his Celebration Band.

5/10/2010 • Lindsay P

They were AWESOME!! They made our wedding a fun party which is what we wanted it to be. The dance floor was packed and everybody LOVED them.;There were a few songs that I really wanted played that they did not play. I would just stress the songs that you want as MUST plays.