We're all 5-Stars on Yelp. Read the reviews here. Here are some of our favorite quotes:
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"I admit it! My standards are REALLY high. That said, I COULD NOT HAVE WISHED FOR MORE FROM KUGELPLEX. We first heard them when they played at an Oakland Symphony event, where they knocked our sox off. They were so talented that we never dreamed they would consider playing our wedding, but we decided that there was no harm in asking. And... They agreed! Not only that, they travelled all the way from the Bay Area to Santa Barbara to make the event. And WOW were we lucky. Kugelplex was TRULY AWESOME: They are deeply talented, passionate artists with an incredible love for the music and an intuitive sense of how to hold, reflect, and gently shift the dynamic mood of a wedding. The music was sophisticated, gorgeous, full of life, and even ecstatic at all the right times. Plus, the band members were a delight. Kugelplex's energy and art absolutely made our wedding experience, and I know the wedding party felt that way too, based on their many compliments. THANK YOU KUGELPLEX! What beauty!"
-Sarah
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"Kugelplex was amazing!!!! Jason and his team of incredible musicians made our horah and wedding dreams come true. From the moment we met jason we knew we were in good hands. He listened to our wants and needs and assured us they'd bring them to life. He was extremely professional, organized and patient! Above all, Kugelplex was THE hit of our wedding. Our guests couldn't stop talking about them. They played music as our guests were arriving, they cued up music during the ceremony, played during cocktail hour and played the most epic pre dinner horah ever!!! We were flying, jumping, twirling and everyone, from young to old were having the best time ever. Kugelplex's passion and energy radiated the whole time they were playing and they definitely set the tone for an incredible rest of the night. We'd highly recommend them and are looking forward to the next time we get to use them!"
-Sheena
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"These guys are absolute rockstars! They made our wedding... in addition to providing the party music, marching music and a killer "Sea of Love" to walk down the aisle, they played the most epic Hora we've ever seen... In addition, they are a joy to work, with and Jason was so helpful as we were planning our wedding. We can't recommend them enough!!!"
-Joe
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"Forget about the DJ! Kugelplex played for my daughters's B'not Mitzvah last January. They were fantastic. Jason was a pleasure to work with, very responsive, very flexible in coming up with the best configuration for our venue. The band was just terrific. They have a great hipster but sincere vibe and are all very talented musicians. Having a live Klezmer band was really important to us. We wanted our nighttime B'not Mitzvah party to have a deep connection to the spirit of the daytime ceremony. Kugleplex helped make the party a Jewish celebration of life and love. My daughters, both string musicians, played a couple of songs with the band. We had arranged this before hand with Jason who met the girls for a few Klezmer lessons ahead of the party. Having the chance to play music for friends and family on the day they became adults was a moving experience for all of us. Really, one of the best days of my life and Kugelplex was an important part of it."
-Jill
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"Kugelplex was a massive part of why my wedding was so special, beautiful and personal. I am a huge music person and for me music was one of the most important elements of the day. I spent months listening to and vetting dozens of klezmer (and other) bands, and after my amazing experience with Kugelplex, I could not recommend any band more highly. From the pre-ceremony music to the dinner music and all the way through the hora, Kugelplex's music was stunningly beautiful, artful and powerful. These guys are true professionals who infuse true soul in all they do.
Jason Ditzian, the band's leader, invested an enormous amount of time and energy to accommodate everyone one of my multiple requests which made the event super personal. At my request, Jason worked with my Rabbi to select a beautiful ancient tune and inspired all of our guests to chant it so we walked down the aisle to the warmth of our guests singing to Kugelplex's magical accompaniment.
Jason also worked with our dear friend who delivered a speech during the ceremony to incorporate personal musical references at key moments like a masterful Radiolab production. Additionally, Kugelplex provided perfect musical accompaniment to two live signing performances during the ceremony: one duet (John Prine's "In Spite of Ourselves") performed by friends and another duet (John Denver's "Follow Me") performed by my mother (I was the bride) and my husband's father who had never met each other before. For both of these duets, Kugelplex recorded soundtracks in advance of the wedding in the singers' key of choice so they could practice beforehand! And Kugelplex also coordinated beautifully with another band at the event, a brass band that appeared immediately after the ceremony for the recessional. The two bands played together and it was amazing!
The band played a beautiful set of instrumental cabaret-like music during dinner, and after dinner, our hora and the mezinka (traditionally played for the bride's parents when their last child is "married off") was hands down the best hora in history. Even the rabbi said so! Totally rockin. Everyone was dancing.
Above all, the music--which included a clarinet, violin and accordion-- was just incredibly gorgeous and moving. Many guests told us it was the best wedding music they'd ever heard elevating the event overall into a huge success. Overall Kugelplex strongly exceeded my very high expectations."
-Zahavah
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"We hired Jason and Kugelplex for our wedding in April. If you are looking for an incredible klezmer band and a band that can also play all kinds of music that will get everyone off their feet dancing, look no further. Our guests are still talking about how amazing the band was, they really made the wedding so special. And the musicians are incredibly talented in their own right, and together they create magic. We had this incredible procession following the ceremony, where everyone followed the band dancing to the next spot, surrounded by the water, views of the golden gate bridge and the Marin headlands, we followed the band playing this awesome gypsy music, it felt like it was out of a movie. And if you want the best Hora ever, well, they are also your band. We had an hour long hora, and it was one of the most joyous, fun, ruckus good times ever. Everyone let down their guard and had the best time. I can't thank Kugelplex enough for bringing so much joy and heart and gorgeous music to our special day."
-Brando
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"Looking for a Klezmer band? Look no further! Kugelplex will rock your world! They played at my wedding and I couldn't be happier! Our dance floor was full for the entire time that they were there. Guests kept coming up to us and asking about the band since this was something so unique and wonderful! We have many musicians in the family so the expectations were high, but these guys met and exceeded them!"
-Anya
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"AMAZING. AMAZING. AMAZING!!! Never thought we'd find a band like kugelplex to do our wedding. didn't even know something this cool was out there. they brought the house down with the best hora anyone had ever seen. They were so great that two separate couples that were friends of ours booked them immediately after our wedding! Jason and the guys make old school klezmer freaking COOL. I can't wait to book them again for another event!"
-Joe
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"It had always been a dream of mine to have a klezmer band at my wedding. I am a musician and most of my friends musicians - we are very picky about what we listen to. Kugelplex exceeded all of our expectations! Here's Why...
1) their MUSICIANSHIP is off the charts - they are chock full of multi-instrumentalist virtuosi who can hop from klezmer to jazz to American roots in an instant; 2) their SHOWMANSHIP is exceptional - they march, they dance, and their energy is infectious. David Rosenfeld (mandolin/violin/badchan) rallies the guests and gets them dancing and singing. 3) their PROFESSIONALISM is reflected is the degree to which they are committed to realizing the vision of their clients. My wife loves David Bowie, I love Argentine Tango - Kugelplex wove our requests seamlessly into their set.
After our wedding, countless guests came up to us and said that Kugelplex was the best wedding band they had ever heard. Many of them had never heard klezmer and we're surprised by how much they loved it. My wife and I will never forget what Kugelplex brought to our wedding."
-Anthony
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"We hired KugelPlex for our wedding and we were incredibly happy with the outcome it was exactly what we were hoping for! Kugelplex is not your grandmother's Klezmer band, they bring a contemporary, jazzy, gypsy energy while still staying true to the tradition. I've now been to two weddings with Kugelplex (my cousin had them at her wedding seven years ago), and wish I could get married again to experience it again! Kugelplex was very flexible and accommodated all of our particular requests-- they even learned several traditional Yiddish/Russian songs they never played before and successfully accompanied my family members who performed a few numbers. Their hora was wild, had the whole room (even the non-Jews) dancing-- make sure you have a big enough dance floor. Their leader, Jason also stayed to the end and DJ-ed contemporary music afterward so we didn't need to hire a separate DJ-- he did a great job!
Hands down, of all the elements of our wedding, we got the most compliments on the how great the band was!"
-Lyuba
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"We hired Kugelplex for a wedding. Wow! In sum, if you want virtuoso playing, hire Kugelplex. If, on the other hand, you want a great party band, you should hire Kugelplex. But if you just want to have the nicest folks playing great soulful music, I would recommend Kugelplex. Of course, if you're looking for a band who will play right through an aquatic spider attack, and whip your guests into such a frenzy that they start diving into the lake, your only option might be Kugelplex (see below). Hire these folks! They are possessed with music.
1. Jason was fantastic from the start. He helped us figure out how to arrange the ceremony and responded to infinite unreasonable requests with charm and enthusiasm, making all of our ideas better. I can't tell if Jason has a beautiful soul or if he traded it away to the devil to be able to play the clarinet the way he does, but in either case he made our party pure magic.
2. The band started playing at 2pm during tea-time, and they finished playing at 4am (that's AM) by the bonfire.
3. For a processional march, we sent Jason some examples of music that we liked the feel of. One piece was by a Sundanese gamelan orchestra. Jason immediately volunteered to arrange a beautiful gamelan processional, to be played by our friends. On a gamelan. You know, the gamelan he just happened to have lying around. The result was personal, haunting, and heartbreakingly beautiful.
4. For the hora, we invited all of our guests to join us on a floating dock. As the guests piled onto the dock, it started to sink under the weight, and when the bottom touched the water, thousands of spiders of all different species sprung up through the wooden slats, flooded from their usual homes. But no mere aquatic spider attack would keep the band from playing an awesome hora. They played a hora on land and another on the water as we launched a dance party on a raft. The infectious frenetic energy possessed the guests, with some diving into the lake from the raft right in their best wedding garb. How many bands can do that?
5. After dinner, the band transformed into Lord Loves A Working Man and kept us all sweaty on the dance floor with sweet southern soul. Everyone from the age of 1 to 86 was dancing!
6. Around midnight, we took everyone out again on the raft under the stars, and the band played the most soul-stirring set with half the guests dancing frenetically and the other half lying under the musicians, absorbing every sound in absolute bliss. After that, the band set up in the woods and later by the bonfire and played until 4am. The guests could not get enough."
-Emma
