Rich Ellis
Vancouver WA Wedding DJ At Royal Oaks CC
Vancouver WA Wedding DJ Rich Ellis was the host for Erica and Justin’s wedding and reception held at Royal Oaks Country Club on Saturday, February 22, 2014.
Ceremony Highlights:
- Wedding Processional: Jonathan Firey – Canon In D
- Bride Entrance: Train – Marry Me
- Bride/Groom Exit: Ray Lamontagne – You Are The Best Thing
A throwback to the ‘Great Gatsby’ era set the tone for the reception early as the newlyweds requested a mix of classics from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s from Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Billie Holiday and others for the cocktail hour.
Vancouver WA Wedding DJ Reception Highlights:
- Grand Entrance: Frank Sinatra – Come Fly With Me
- Cake Cutting: Natalie Cole – This Will Be
- First Dance: Etta James – At Last
- Bride and Father Dance: Louis Armstrong – What A Wonderful World
- Groom and Mother Dance: Fleetwood Mac – Landslide
- Bouquet Toss: Dusty Springfield – Wishin’ & Hopin’
- Garter Toss: Nelly – Hot In Herre
- Last Dance Song: Lumineers – Ho Hey
For his toast, the Father of the Bride created a rap video that was a huge hit and received a thunderous applause from the 150 guests in attendance. The energy in the room was amazing and the packed dance floor that spilled over for many of the songs, reflected that as guests got down to everything from The Beatles ‘Twist & Shout’ to Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’.
Congratulations to Erica and Justin and thank you for choosing PRO DJs.
Post Event Satisfaction Survey:
“Rich really made our special day perfect. My wife and I could not have asked for anyone more professional and in tune with his job and reading the atmosphere of the crowd.., Rich had this party going so well that we asked him to stay an hour later and he had no problem with that. Rich was a professional from head to toe and I will be hiring him for my future business events. I would recommend Rich to anyone looking for an amazing event.” -Justin Johnson
- Event Date: Saturday, February 22, 2014
- Event Type: Wedding & Reception
- Event Location: Royal Oaks Country Club
- Event Staff: Rich Ellis
- Quality of Customer Service via Telephone: Excellent
- Quality of Customer Service via Internet: Excellent
- Quality of Customer Service at Event: Excellent
- Friendliness of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Promptness of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Professionalism of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Performance: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Appearance: Excellent
- System Appearance: Excellent
- Sound Quality: Excellent
- Overall Volume Levels: Excellent
- Music Selection: Excellent
- Incorporation of Your Requests: Excellent
- Lighting Effects: N/A
- Equipment Appearance: Excellent
- Overall Customer Service: Excellent
- Planning Assistance: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Cooperation with Other Vendors: Excellent
- Overall Performance Rating: Excellent
- Would you recommend this service to others? Yes
Gresham Wedding DJ Persimmon Country Club
The last time I performed at Persimmon Country Club in Gresham, Oregon, it was a rare rainy day in August. In fact, it was quite stormy with lightning that forced the ceremony scheduled for outside to be moved inside the main ballroom.
One might expect that kind of weather in late January, but that wasn’t the case for Brenda and Roger’s wedding and reception on Friday, January 24, 2014.
It was a spectacular clear, sunny afternoon that provided many great photo opportunities with Mt. Hood in the background nearby.
Gresham Wedding DJ Ceremony Highlights:
- Wedding Processional: Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight
- Bride Entrance: Alison Krauss – When You Say Nothing At All
- Bride/Groom Exit: Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Following the ceremony in the main clubhouse, guests moved to the main ballroom for the reception.
Gresham Wedding DJ Reception Highlights:
- Cake Cutting: James Taylor – How Sweet It Is
- First Dance: Lonestar – Amazed
- Bride Dance with her Brother: Luther Vandross – Dance With My Father Again
- Last Dance Song: George Strait – Cross My Heart
Roger let me know he had never really danced before and so his first dance with Brenda was also HIS first dance 🙂 Later on, I caught him making an attempt at the ‘Cupid Shuffle’ and a few other songs, so he appeared to like what he had been missing.
Brenda and Roger’s request list featured mostly Oldies, Classic Rock and Country and guests enjoyed the mix that included The Beatles, B-52’s and Shania Twain.
One Bar Mitzvah Two Portland DJs
Portland DJs Steve Marker and Rich Ellis both performed at Solomon’s Bar Mitzvah celebration on Saturday, January 18, 2014, at the Ecotrust building located in the Pearl District.
Instead of one big party for adults and parents together as is customary, our client decided to have Steve entertain the kids on the 3rd floor and Rich play music just for the adults on the 2nd floor.
All guests came together briefly for a toast to Solomon followed by dancing to ‘The Hora’ with chair raising and other Israeli dance favorites before the kids returned to their party and the adults danced to the classic hits, including the Rolling Stones, James Brown, Stevie Wonder and more.
The kids loved having their own party, but so did the adults. It worked out great and Solomon’s mom Rebecca let me know she really enjoyed the music.
“Thanks for doing such a great job at Solomon’s bar mitzvah!! Everyone had a fabulous time – especially us!! I have recommended ProDJ to all of our friends!!” -Rebecca (Solomon’s mom)
Thank you Andie Petkus Photography for sharing photos from this event.
First 2014 Wedding Timberline Lodge Oregon
The Northwest Winter has been a dry one and the snowpack is low, but it made travel to Kathryn and Cesar’s wedding Timberline Lodge a snap for everyone attending.
It was a beautiful day and guests who arrived from as far away as Peru were treated to a special evening at one of Oregon’s most iconic locales in the Raven’s Nest.
Wedding Timberline Lodge Ceremony Highlights:
- Wedding Processional: Seating of the Mothers (Schubert – Ava Maria) Wedding Party (Mozart – Laudate Dominum)
- Bride Entrance: Bach – Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
- Bride/Groom Exit: Handel – Horn Pipe
Following the wedding, everyone went downstairs for cocktails near the famous lodge fireplace. During this time, the Raven’s Nest was flipped for the reception and dinner and I moved my sound system to where the ceremony had taken place which also served as the dance floor.
Wedding Timberline Lodge Reception Highlights:
- First Dance: Aventura – Solo Por Un Beso Letra
- Father/Bride & Mother/Groom Dance: Israel Kamakawiwo’ole – Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Music for dancing featured a wide variety of genres, including Oldies, Top 40, Country and Latin.
Kathryn let me know early on that her guests liked to dance and they had a great time movin’ to the hits… everything from The Beatles to Earth, Wind & Fire, Marc Anthony to Daddy Yankee. For the guests visiting from Peru, I learned one of the biggest American classic hits in their country is the Pointer Sisters ‘I’m So Excited’.
Post Event Satisfaction Survey:
“When I hired Rich, I was looking for a DJ with a great reputation, who would get the job done. I had no idea what type of music I wanted, and gave Rich very little direction. Rich turned out to be the best choice for my wedding, and went beyond expectations to make the wedding a blast. Our guests came from four different continents, with different music preferences, and Rich was able to find the perfect mix of international songs that kept people dancing until the last song. I have never seen a wedding where so many people stayed and danced until the very end. Rich has preternatural ability to read a crowd and keep them dancing. He did an amazing job, and I would recommend him to anyone who wants a great party.” -Kathryn Leen & Cesar Oviedo
- Event Date: Saturday, January 4, 2014
- Event Type: Wedding & Reception
- Event Location: Timberline Lodge
- Event Staff: Rich Ellis
- Quality of Customer Service via Telephone: Excellent
- Quality of Customer Service via Internet: Excellent
- Quality of Customer Service at Event: Excellent
- Friendliness of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Promptness of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Professionalism of your Entertainer: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Performance: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Appearance: Excellent
- System Appearance: Excellent
- Sound Quality: Excellent
- Overall Volume Levels: Excellent
- Music Selection: Excellent
- Incorporation of Your Requests: Excellent
- Lighting Effects: N/A
- Equipment Appearance: Excellent
- Overall Customer Service: Excellent
- Planning Assistance: Excellent
- Entertainer’s Cooperation with Other Vendors: Excellent
- Overall Performance Rating: Excellent
- Would you recommend this service to others? Yes
Portland Corporate Holiday Party DJ: 3 For 30
Happy Holidays from PRO DJs.
With a late Thanksgiving this year, Portland corporate holiday party DJ events have concentrated on the first two weekends of December 2013, including three events in 30 hours for yours truly on the 13th and 14th.
Friday night I was at the Hilton Vancouver for a Hawaiian-themed company party. After cocktails, dinner and a live performance in the Heritage Ballroom, everyone joined me in the Discovery Ballroom for a raffle drawing and dancing.
As expected, the prize giveaways got everyone excited and the dance floor was packed for nearly four straight hours. I played everything… from the classic big hits to 80’s hair bands, 90’s hip hop and Country, they loved it all and may have kept going past our 2am cut-off time if allowed 🙂
Post Event Client Feedback:
“We had great feedback and I will definitely be in touch to secure the date next year.”
-Corey Anderson, Kiewit Pacific Company
On Saturday, I played Christmas music and entertained the families of employees at their annual Children’s Christmas party. With an 11am start, I didn’t have much turnaround from the night before, but I felt great and the kids had fun with Santa before joining in on some games with me and dancing with their folks.
Saturday night marked eight straight years PRO DJs has performed at the holiday party for a Vancouver Garden Supply company. Once again, employees and their guests enjoyed the gaming tables and for cocktails and dinner, I played a mix of Christmas favorites.
Everyone really looks forward to this time of year as this generous company indulges their employees with a large number of great prizes they can win, including tools, electronics, gift cards, and big screen TV’s. This year, they also gave away money via the cash machine, where raffle winners had a chance to grab as much cash as they could in 20 seconds.
These giveaways always provide a great lead-in to dancing and guests filled the floor in the time we had left, getting down to the latest hits.
