Live music and a DJ for a corporate dinner in Amsterdam, played at the volume where people can still talk.

How it works

Which format fits your corporate dinner

The right format for a corporate dinner depends on the guest count, the mood you want and how much of the evening needs music. Below is the shortlist we draw from once you tell us the numbers.

Every format above is one booking through one contact, and we tell you honestly when a smaller format covers the whole evening rather than pushing you toward a bigger lineup than the room needs.

Volume that lets people talk

The single most common request for a corporate dinner is the simplest one to get wrong: music that does not stop people talking. An acoustic duo or a jazz trio like Fourtunes or Dupa Trio plays at a level built for exactly this, brushes rather than sticks on the drums, an upright or muted bass, a guitar or piano kept under the conversation rather than over it. A lounge DJ works the same way at a dinner: the set stays low and considered through the meal, then only opens up once you tell us the room is ready. We agree the volume with you before the day, not on the night.

How long the music plays across a three hour dinner

A typical corporate dinner runs about three hours from arrival to the last course, and the music is built around that shape rather than played straight through. A common structure is a short set for arrival and welcome drinks, a longer set held low under the starter and the main course, a pause through any speeches or toasts, and a final set that can either stay quiet through dessert or lift if the evening calls for it. A duo or trio plays two to three sets of thirty to forty five minutes across the evening, with recorded music underneath during the breaks. A DJ runs continuously and simply moves the volume and the energy up and down to match the room. We build the exact timing around your run of show so nothing overlaps with a welcome speech or a toast.

Where the musicians stand

Placement matters more at a dinner than at almost any other kind of event, because the act is sharing the room with tables, waiters and sightlines rather than commanding a stage. A duo or trio usually sits in a corner of the room, close enough to be heard clearly but out of the path of service and away from any lectern or screen. A DJ booth needs a little more space and a power point, and we keep the speakers angled so the tables nearest the rig are not overwhelmed while the tables furthest away can still hear the set. For a lift after dessert with a live saxophone, we ask for a small amount of open floor near the DJ so the moment has room to build without moving furniture mid dinner.

A client dinner is not a team dinner

The brief changes with the audience. A client dinner or a board and partner dinner wants music that says the evening was considered without drawing attention to itself, an acoustic duo or a jazz trio, sometimes a smaller vocal-led trio like Laura Dooge for a quieter, more intimate room. A team dinner or a company dinner can carry more energy earlier and more often wants the evening to build into something livelier once the plates are cleared, which is where Misstery Trio's vocal harmony sits well through the meal before a DJ like Savoy or a lift from Golden Sax takes the room past dessert. Neither is more correct than the other, it depends on who is at the table.

What a budget of EUR 2,000 buys

A dinner for around 80 guests with a budget around EUR 2,000 is a common brief, and it comfortably covers more than one good option. A jazz trio at EUR 1,400 or an acoustic duo at EUR 900 covers the full evening on its own, and either leaves room in the budget for travel or a short extension. A lounge DJ at EUR 850 paired with an acoustic duo at EUR 900 covers both the reception and the dinner from EUR 1,750 combined, still inside the budget. If the evening wants a lift after dessert, a DJ with a live saxophonist such as Golden Sax can play a shorter closing set, with the price on request.

Adding a lift after dessert

Not every corporate dinner needs to become a party, but many do want a change of pace once the plates are cleared and the speeches are done. The most common way we build this is a DJ that has played background for the meal and steps up the energy for a shorter closing set, or Golden Sax, a DJ with a live saxophone that gives the room a visible, audible lift without needing a full band change. If your dinner is likely to move toward dancing, our corporate event DJ Amsterdam page covers that half of the evening in more depth, and for a live saxophone over the DJ specifically see DJ with live saxophone Amsterdam.

Which acts we book for a corporate dinner

Dupa Trio and Fourtunes are our two most-booked jazz trios for a seated corporate dinner, both playing at conversation level through the meal. Velvet Jazz reworks modern hits into forties swing for a dinner with a more festive, vintage tone. Misstery Trio's vocal harmony is a cocktail hour and dinner favourite for a warmer room, and Laura Dooge plays a quieter, more intimate dinner in a smaller vocal-led trio. For the dance floor after dinner, Savoy reads a multi-generational room well, and Golden Sax is the act we send most often for a live lift after dessert. If the whole evening's corporate calendar matters more than tonight's dinner, our jazz band for corporate events page covers receptions, launches and galas as well.