Hiring live music in Bengaluru

At ₹10,000, the money buys one singer for the evening. Four of the nine people who wrote us a number asked for one singer or one instrument and wrote ₹10,000 or less. A company host wrote ₹30,000 for a cover band at a 200-guest office event. At that money, the prices above buy singers to a track.

Two singers to a track cost ₹16,000 from the same company's basic pack (our sum of a man at ₹6,000 and a woman at ₹10,000), and about ₹40,000 a pair for singers from TV reality shows.

The cheapest live music is often local. A music teacher, a student from a music school or a college band can play a small home gathering. We found no published fee for any of them, so ask a music school near you what its teachers or students take for two hours.

Our two estimates are built from karaoke singers' fees, since no Bengaluru live singer, duo or trio we read prints a price. They are the figures we're least sure of, and a trio that rehearses together, like a band that plays hotels, costs well above them.

A karaoke singer and a live player are different things. A singer to a track sounds like the record and costs less. A singer who plays the guitar or keys can go softer while people talk and change songs as the room goes.

Ghazal, qawwali and classical music are priced by the main artist's name and the group. A Carnatic concert is usually the singer with a violin and a mridangam. One host planning a ticketed Carnatic concert for 600 wrote to us with ₹2 to 3 lakh for everything.

The planner's typical band, ₹1 to 1.5 lakh, sits between the two. What moves a quote up is mostly who comes and what they bring: a regular line-up, a sound engineer, lights, and the time to learn your songs.

The low end is a fine choice for a house party, a small hall or a dinner where people want to talk. For a wedding dance floor, a company stage or the video, the top end is where the money shows.

Three, seated, for a garden or a home

One small speaker, guests close by

Five on a stage, for a hall that dances

A drum kit, keys and stage lights

• Up to 50, at home: one singer with a guitar or keys, or a duo, with one small speaker. The orchestra company sizes its smallest pack, two singers and four speakers, for up to 50 guests.
• 50 to 100, seated and eating: a duo or trio playing softly, so people can still talk at the table.
• 100 to 300, dancing: four or five musicians, with speakers and a technician. The orchestra company sizes its four-singer pack, with six speakers, for up to 300.
• A ceremony: Praveen Bhat suggests a solo singer or a duo, singing beside the stage instead of recorded music, because guests aren't watching a band while the ritual goes on.
• A Carnatic or Hindustani recital needs people seated and listening. It doesn't mix with a party where people chat and eat, so give it its own hour.

Band or DJ? A DJ with his own speakers and some lights costs about ₹25,000 for 3 to 4 hours in Bengaluru (see our guide to DJs). Many receptions have the band at dinner and a DJ for the dancing after. On the planner's table, a typical band costs about three times a typical DJ (our sum).

Most of the 34 requests we got asked for one singer or one instrument: 23 of them, mostly homes, flats and clubhouses of 10 to 60 guests, a mehendi or a surprise; two were for much bigger rooms.

Hiring the sound yourself. TechnoRent in HSR Layout hires four tops and two subwoofers for ₹14,999 for 12 hours, and a 1,000 W PA alone for ₹4,450. Ask whether mics, a mixer and a technician come with it. A band also needs mics on the drums and an amp for each guitar, so send the band's list of what it needs (its "tech rider") to whoever brings the sound.

One set of mics can do the speeches too. Ask if the band's mics can also carry the speeches, the emcee and the cake moment, so you pay for one rig.

Expect them an hour or two early. The orchestra company's artists come 60 minutes before, and Muzic5, a Bengaluru band, does about 2 hours of soundcheck. The soundcheck is loud, so finish the decor first.

Night use needs written permission. The 2022 circular says using a loudspeaker or a PA needs written permission from the authorities, and none from 10pm to 6am outside a closed hall. In the High Court the state said no permanent licence had been issued.

The music licence. For weddings, one outlet reported in May 2026 that the Commerce Ministry said no fee is due, though RMPL and IPRS may still charge in some cases. Nothing we read exempts a birthday or an office party. If a hotel bills you for a licence, ask which licence and for which right.

• How many play live. The orchestra company's singers sing to a karaoke track; that's the format, and the price reflects it. Muzic5, a Bengaluru band, advertises "no backing tracks, karaoke or lip-syncing", which tells you some acts use them.
• The names of who's coming, in a message. Many bands line up players for each show.
• A video from a wedding or party like yours, filmed on the night, a few unbroken minutes with the sound on. A highlights reel shows only the best moments.
• A call with the band leader before you pay the advance.
• A backup. Ask what happens if the lead singer falls ill: is there a second singer, and at the same price?

• Two lists: the songs you must hear, and the ones you don't want played in front of the elders. Add the language mix: old Hindi for the elders, Kannada or Tamil for the in-laws, English for friends.
• The rarer the song, the earlier it goes. A band needs time to learn a song it doesn't play, so your first-dance song goes first.
• The orchestra company asks for the song list well in advance, or it plays its own, and 10 days' notice for rehearsal.
• Name one person who takes requests on the night, so the band isn't caught between two sides of the family.

• A band usually wants at least a week to line up the musicians for a four or five-piece. 3 to 4 days can work, and last minute only if they're free.
• Busy dates: the orchestra company says Rajyotsava (1 November), the Ganesha festival and wedding dates cost more, and to book Rajyotsava a month ahead. It doesn't say by how much.
• Your songs go to the band at least a week before the day, as question 7 says.

Rain on a terrace or a lawn. Instruments and the sound desk need a roof over them, and a downpour can stop the set. Before you pay, agree in writing what happens to your money if it does: a shorter set, a move indoors, or a new date.