Skylark Music Reviews
Reviews
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Featured
![Cecilia]()
Cecilia Sent on 12/14/2025We loved Skylark
We're so happy we hired Justin and Jesse for our wedding! The whole process to hire them was really easy and they totally understood the vibe we were going for from the start. We had a jazz trio (sax, piano, & bass) and had them play live during cocktail hour and parts of the dinner, and honestly it was so perfect. Our guests kept coming up to us saying how much they loved the music. They're really talented musicians, professional, impeccably dressed, and just seemed to know exactly what to play at the right times. The whole vibe felt classy and not stuffy.
Then when it was time to dance, Justin switched over to DJing and the transition was smooth. Justin really cared about making our wedding great. He is the OPPOSITE of a cheesy wedding DJ!
If you want great live music and a DJ who knows what they're doing, definitely hire Justin and his team. They made our reception exactly what we wanted it to be. -
Emily Sent on 02/16/2026
Highly recommend!!!
My husband and I had an amazing experience with our wedding music with Skylark from start to finish. Justin and Jesse played live music for our ceremony and cocktail hour, and Justin DJ’d our reception. Justin was great at communicating with us both before the wedding and throughout the reception, which made everything feel easy and well organized and was wonderful to work with. It made everything feel seamless and stress-free and we knew everything was under control. Justin has a great attention to detail. We had a smaller wedding of about 50 people, and Justin did an amazing job keeping the energy up all night. He gave helpful suggestions during the reception that kept things flowing smoothly and made the night even more fun. We would absolutely recommend them! -
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Steve Sent on 12/24/2025
Skylark Music
ustin was a pleasure to work with from the initial interview to the last song at our wedding. Justin played with a three piece band for our ceremony (guitar, piano, bass) and cocktail hour (saxophone, piano, bass) and then DJ'd our reception. Justin made sure that the music played at our wedding and cocktail hour was tailored to specifically match the vibe of our dinner playlist. He even surprised us by playing one of our favorite Herbie Hancock tunes during cocktail hour. The vibe of the live jazz trio during cocktail hour was a perfect transition over to dinner. Justin then switched over to DJ our dinner and reception afterwards. He played all the right songs to keep the dance floor flowing all night. If you are seeking a combination of live music and DJ at your wedding I would highly recommend Skylark Music. -
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![Rebecca]()
Rebecca Sent on 12/16/2025the best decision you'll make
From our initial conversation, Jesse made my husband and I feel completely at ease. We came in with a lot of questions (and, admittedly, a fair amount of overthinking) around song choices and overall vibe, and he met every single one with patience, understanding, and great recommendations.
On our wedding day, Jesse and his ensemble were nothing short of incredible. The live music didn’t just fill the space, but set the tone. It elevated the entire atmosphere of our wedding in a way that felt deeply personal, warm, and elegant—perfectly calibrated to who we are and what we wanted the day to feel like!
Beyond the artistry, the level of professionalism was unmatched. Completely dialed in, Skylark made everything feel effortless (which, as a couple getting married, is a true gift).
We honestly can’t imagine our wedding day without them. Their music made the day what it was. If you’re considering working with them, do not hesitate. It will be one of the best decisions you make! -
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Josefina Sent on 12/15/2025
Amazing time working with Skylark Music!
Jesse was amazing at our wedding and we cannot recommend his service more. He was incredibly professional and responsive over email, and respected our music requests. When the wedding day came around, he kept our guests entertained during cocktail hour and transitioned seamlessly to our dinner service. Further, when he discovered there was an antique piano in our venue (which we didn't mention to him since the venue told us it wasn't tuned or working), he asked permission to get it running and used it instead of his keyboard. This made for even better ambiance and photos and we were very impressed at how quickly he adapted. We can confidently recommend Jesse and Skylark Music for any wedding and are very thankful to them making our day so special! -
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![Tara]()
Tara Sent on 12/14/2025Band and DJ experience rolled into one!
We first saw Justin and the Skylark musicians at a friends' wedding and knew we had to reach out to him for our own! Justin was incredibly collaborative, responsive, flexible, and kind. Our venue staff wanted to clone him for every event and our guests appreciated his approachable and laid-back demeanor in addition to his perfect song timing! We knew we wanted beautiful instrumentals for our ceremony and cocktail hour but a fun DJ vibe for our reception and these guys are the perfect marriage -- no pun intended -- of both. -
![Kelsey]()
Kelsey Sent on 12/12/2025The Best of Both Worlds: Live Band + DJ Perfection
We could not have been happier with Skylark Music they were incredible to work with! From the very beginning, Justin spent months helping us think through every detail—offering great suggestions and thoughtful input that really helped set the tone for each part of the day.
For our wedding, we had the Skylark ensemble play live music during the ceremony and cocktail hour, and they were absolutely fantastic. The live jazz and covers created the perfect atmosphere—elegant but still relaxed and fun. When it was time for dinner and the reception, Justin seamlessly transitioned to his DJ setup, keeping the energy flowing with an amazing mix of songs that got everyone on the dance floor.
Having both live music and a DJ through Skylark was one of the best decisions we made—it gave us the best of both worlds and made the whole evening feel special and dynamic. We can’t recommend Justin and Skylark Music enough! -
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![Timo]()
Timo Sent on 12/12/2025The best decision of our wedding
If you are currently wedding planning and debating between the elegance of live musicians or the versatility of a DJ, stop looking and hire Justin and Skylark Music immediately. Working with Justin was hands down one of the best decisions we made for our big day.
With Skylark, we effectively "had our cake and ate it too." We were initially torn because we wanted the romantic atmosphere of live instruments, but we also wanted a high-energy party with our specific favorite songs (which a band is often limited by). Plus, full bands are insanely expensive. Justin offered the perfect hybrid solution. We were able to have a stunning guitar, violin, and cello trio for our ceremony and cocktail hour, and then transition to Justin DJing the reception. It was the best of both worlds—we saved on the cost of a 10-piece band but sacrificed absolutely nothing in terms of quality or vibe.
Beyond the music itself, Justin’s professionalism is unmatched. He walked us through every step of the planning process. But the true test of a vendor is how they handle stress. A couple of months before our wedding, our venue suddenly updated their outdoor music guidelines. We were in a total panic, thinking our ceremony plans were ruined. We let Justin know, and he responded immediately with a calm, "can-do" attitude. He adjusted the instrumentation to meet the new rules quickly and sorted it out without us having to lift a finger.
He also went above and beyond to personalize the evening. We have a close friend who is a singer, and we wanted her to perform a couple of songs during the reception. Justin didn't hesitate; he coordinated directly with her to ensure the audio levels were perfect and the logistics were seamless. It ended up being such a special moment, and Justin made it happen effortlessly.
And then, there was the party.
Justin transitioned to MC/DJ duties and read the crowd perfectly. Because we chose the DJ route for the reception, we got to hear the original versions of all our favorite tracks. The dance floor was absolutely wild all night long. The energy was so high that at one point, while we were taking portraits outside, our photographer actually stopped and told us, “There is literally a rave going on inside.”
From the elegant strings and the special guest performance to the absolute rager at the end, Justin executed everything perfectly. If you want a stress-free experience and a vendor who truly cares about your day, hire Skylark Music! -
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![Averyann]()
Averyann Sent on 06/14/2025Highly recommend!
We hired Skylark Music for our wedding and can't recommend them enough! Justin was super helpful during the planning process, answered all our questions, and took the time to develop a detailed plan with us. Justin and Jesse played beautiful acoustic music for our ceremony and cocktail hour, which added the sentimental and elevated touches we were looking for. Justin then DJed our reception. He worked with the playlists we provided and kept the dance floor full the whole night. -
![Katie]()
Katie Sent on 09/26/2024Fantastic duo! The sprinkles on top to our wedding day
We initially didn’t plan on having any live music/DJ during our wedding day as we were having more of a smaller and casual wedding (~50 guests) but I am beyond happy that we found Skylark Music as they were the perfect addition to make our day magical!
It was so easy working with Justin from Skylark Music and they were exactly what we were looking for; live music for our ceremony and cocktail hour, and a DJ for our reception.
We requested a specific song to be played for our ceremony and it was executed so beautifully! I lowkey wish I could have been a guest at my wedding to have fully experienced it. We also missed out on hearing the live saxophone and piano for our cocktail hour as we were busy taking photos but our guests were raving about the live music!
Skylark Music made our day so magical and it seriously flew by. -
![Yichi]()
Yichi Sent on 08/18/2024Unforgettable Wedding Day Thanks to Skylark Music!
We can't thank Justin and Skylark Music enough for creating the perfect soundtrack for our wedding and turning our vision into a magical day! From the start, it was an absolute joy to work with Justin. He was communicative, organized, and so easy to collaborate with during the planning process. On the wedding day, he went above and beyond, even assisting with small but important details like pushing rainwater off the tent during the ceremony (we had several rainstorms throughout our wedding).
Despite the weather, our guests couldn't stop raving about the music, and it was clear they had a blast on the dance floor. The day was truly unforgettable, and we are so grateful for Justin and Skylark Music! -
![Steve]()
Steve Sent on 05/22/2024Everything you could ask for. 10/10
Our wedding could not have gone better, and Skylark music was a big part of that. When we started planning we had another DJ in mind who turned out to be unavailable, but after the first time we spoke with Justin it felt that we found an even better fit than our plan A. The ceremony and cocktail hour music was exactly what we were looking for, and it was easy to see how much fun everyone was having on the dance floor. Justin also did a great job as an MC coordinating with us and other parties to keep everything moving smoothly. Overall, it was a 10/10 experience for us and we'd recommend Skylark Music to others in a heartbeat. -
![Bailey]()
Bailey Sent on 02/07/2024Talented Musicians with Great Service!
We hired Skylark for our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception music and were so happy with the quality of performance that was provided. We knew we wanted a live music component, but were working on a smaller budget, so Justin worked with us so to have a duo present for our ceremony and cocktail hour, followed by him serving as DJ for our reception. He was incredibly communicative, easy to work with, and took our personalities and interests into consideration when finalizing the playlists for our special day. We are so happy with Skylark, and can't recommend them enough! -
![Deborah]()
Deborah Sent on 08/08/2023Fantastic!
We wanted to find someone who can play live music and DJ and luckily, we found Skylark :)
The ceremony and reception went by so fast but the sequencing felt seamless and the music was fitting and created the right mood and atmosphere for our farm wedding and our party centric friends! So appreciative of Justin's suggestions and accommodating our late requests. -
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Julia Sent on 07/19/2023
Perfect for our day
Justin of Skylark Music helped us through the entire process and was extremely kind and attentive throughout our planning process and on wedding day. Together we crafted really beautiful ceremony, cocktail hour and reception playlists. The live music during our ceremony and cocktail hour really added to the intended ambiance of the whole day. We wanted a low key DJ experience for our reception and Justin really understood our wishes and delivered. Wish we could go back and relive it all again. Highly recommend!! -
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![Mary]()
Mary Sent on 02/07/2023An incredible, musical experience
Thank you so much to this beautiful trio for playing our Cocktail hour on 10/08/2022. We are musicians and music educators who love jazz. Jesse and his team played so amazingly and filled our room with a jazz feel, just the way we wanted. We are only sorry we didn't get to chat with them more, because the day went so fast! We would absolutely book this group again for another event. =) -
![Dan]()
Dan K. Sent on 01/31/2023Absolutely fantastic
Justin and Jesse played at our wedding in Hudson, NY on 9/3/22. Justin and Jesse played live music during our ceremony, cocktails, and throughout diner. Justin then DJ'ed during the reception. In the months leading up to the wedding Justin was very responsive and kept in touch. He was very easy to work with. We sent him numerous playlists to work with and bounce ideas off of. He made sure to keep the music to songs and vibes we were going for during the reception, could not have asked for more. The live music was absolutely phenomenal. They learned all the songs we asked of them for the ceremony and then worked off of an inspiration playlist during cocktails and diner. The live music was so much fun and gave an amazing ambience to the evening. During diner they played an acoustic cover of Sweet Child O'Mine that was so great the entire reception could not help but watch and everyone ended up clapping which is amazingly rare to happen while people are playing background music. It was an incredible moment. We recommend Skylark Music to anyone who wants a classy, but not stuffy, and very fun live music. These guys are great! -
![Katie]()
Katie Sent on 01/11/2023Skylark Music is everything you want for both a DJ and live musicians!
Hiring Skylark Music for our live music and DJ was hands-down the BEST decision we made!
Justin and Jesse played live music for our wedding ceremony and cocktail hour, and Justin also DJed our reception. They were nothing short of AMAZING. They were on-time, professional, friendly, and well in sync with each other. They are easy to get in contact with, timely with responses, and willing + able to go with whatever vibe you are looking for! They are also incredibly flexible and diverse with music. My husband and I chose upbeat folk for our live music, but they also do pop music covers, jazz, and classical to name a few.
My husband and I had some odd song requests (Jump in the Line from Beetlejuice and Congratulations - Post Malone) and not only did they learn it without any questions or difficulty, but they NAILED it! Their hauntingly beautiful live rendition of Across the Universe had everyone (including myself) in tears. Guests at our wedding are still telling me how much they loved the live music and DJ.
As a DJ, Justin is very flexible and encourages you to create two separate playlists for both dinner and dancing. He will play ANYTHING you wish- from metal, to eccentric & eclectic, to 80's, rap, R&B, pop, you name it. He was able to read a crowd and keep people on the dance floor.
We 100% recommend choosing them as your live musicians and DJ-- you WILL NOT regret it! -
![Alison]()
Alison Sent on 07/03/2022Amazing ceremony/cocktail music!
Skylark Music was an amazing addition to our ceremony and cocktail hour. We spoke with Justin several times throughout the planning process, and he was always super gracious, kind, and accommodating. He gave us lots of ideas and was even willing to learn/arrange our relatively obscure choices. The arrangements sounded gorgeous, and getting to walk down the aisle to songs so meaningful to us was an incredible experience. Additionally, my family performed a song during the ceremony, and Justin helped make sure it sounded terrific. The jazzy vibe during cocktail hour was really fun and kicked off the party perfectly. Highest recommendation!!! -
![Stephanie]()
Stephanie Sent on 12/28/2021So much fun!
We hired Skylark for our wedding this past August, and we could not have had a better experience. We used them for classical music during our ceremony, some jazz and pop during cocktail hour, and then Justin DJ’d our reception. They did such an AMAZING job throughout the entire day, and were SO EASY to work with through the entire process. We even had some more out of the box requests that Justin was more than willing to accommodate. I HIGHLY recommend hiring Skylark for your wedding, you won’t regret it!!! -
![Ashley]()
Ashley Sent on 11/10/2021Amazing experience
We had a great time working with Jesse and Justin at Skylark for our 11/6 wedding. They provided the music for both our ceremony and cocktail hour. Both Jesse and Justin were super helpful in the planning process as we crafted a playlist based off of their repertoire and our (varied!) musical tastes. They were the perfect addition to our event and I'll still remember how great the moment was as I walked down the aisle to their live music. Would highly recommend! -
![Annabel]()
Annabel Sent on 05/18/2021One-stop shop for wedding music
Skylark is the best choice for a wedding - these guys can do it all!
For our ceremony and cocktail hour, Jesse and Justin played live music. They crafted wonderful arrangements for the processional and recessional music, and filled the room and garden area perfectly during the cocktail hour. Many guests mentioned how impressed they were by the variety of instruments they play and their custom arrangements!
For our dinner and reception, Justin stayed and DJed. He played a great selection of songs for dinner, but really lit up the dance floor for the reception. We had a small wedding of only 50 people and were worried that few people would dance, but this was far from the case! Justin reads the crowd masterfully and intersperses party classics with your music tastes seamlessly like he can read your mind. Thank you for the best party of our lives! -
![Jennifer]()
Jennifer Sent on 09/16/2020The best band!!!
People still keep talking about how amazing Skylark was!! Justin and Jesse were beyond helpful & flexible throughout the planning stages & even during the wedding. We were originally looking just for ceremony music but loved the music so much they played during dinner & even DJ’ed for us. Everyone loved their live music and the music they DJ’ed, they completely made our day!! Thank you again guys, we’ll always be grateful 💕 -
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![Joe]()
Joe R. Sent on 09/05/2019Great jazz standards played at a traditional wedding
Justin and Jesse performed at the outdoor cocktail hour for our wedding held in the Hudson Valley, and we were thrilled to have them play for us. Both my wife and I have a long history in the jazz scene (and played brass instruments in various groups into college), so we were thrilled to have Skylark Music perform a variety of classic jazz standards (and a few newer numbers) that were meaningful to us. Their repertoire is impressive, and the flexibility to perform songs as either accompanied vocal works or instrumental duets was likewise a big draw for us. Furthermore, they were always very responsive to our messages, friendly, and professional. If we held another event we wanted to make classy and enjoyable, we'd definitely contact Skylark again! -
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Rich Sent on 05/09/2019
Truly awesome!
We hired Justin for our wedding at The Garrison on St. Patricks Day 2019. Amazing! The hiring process was very simple, and Jesse was very easy to work with. Jesse and his crew were on time, set up in an awesome area, worked well with the wedding coordinator and put on an amazing performance. The guests, children, everyone throughly enjoyed the music. The music at our venue sounded exactly how it did on Jesse's website or even better. I would highly recommend Jesse for any wedding or event. -
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![Amanda]()
Amanda Sent on 05/01/2019Wonderful unique ensemble for weddings
We hired Justin and Jesse to play our ceremony and cocktail hour. My husband and I are both musicians and we were very impressed by their talent. We loved their "bespoke" style of jazz, classics, and folk which fit perfectly with our rustic, barn wedding. Justin was very nice to work with and helped coordinate everything. Plus, since they're based upstate, they were much cheaper than musicians in NYC. Overall, wonderful guys who add a unique touch to any occasion. -
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