Live indie & rock for the Grade II*-listed Pitt-Rivers gardens on the Wiltshire/Dorset border. From £1,900.
Larmer Tree Gardens sit near Tollard Royal in south Wiltshire, on the county border with Dorset, on the Pitt-Rivers Rushmore Estate. The gardens were laid out by General Augustus Pitt Rivers in 1880 and opened to the public in 1885 (the first private gardens opened to the public in the UK). They’re Grade II* on the Register of Parks and Gardens, cover about 11 acres and have run on a Friday-and-weekend wedding-and-events schedule since restoration in the 1990s.
We’re a Hampshire-based live wedding band that covers Wiltshire and Dorset regularly, so Tollard Royal sits comfortably inside our home patch. No travel surcharges, no overnight accommodation, no anxious 4am drives back from the wrong end of the country.
Larmer Tree weddings tend to use the open-air pavilions and lawns alongside the listed garden buildings. Outdoor and pavilion settings change the acoustic significantly, and weather contingencies need building in early. Our stage setup is built to dress around the room rather than fight it. Black-finished kit, restrained on-stage lighting rather than a stadium rig, and a PA sized for the space rather than the road. We dress in stage-blacks unless you ask otherwise.
A Larmer Tree wedding tends to pull a guest list that’s travelled in for the weekend, with a strong London-and-South-West core. The setlist flexes accordingly: Arctic Monkeys, The Killers and Kings of Leon for the late floor, Oasis and Stereophonics for the mid-evening, modern-pop crossover (Harry Styles, Dua Lipa, Sam Fender) layered through for the chart-aware younger guests. Wedding non-negotiables (Mr Brightside, Don’t Stop Me Now, Sweet Caroline) take the back-half peaks. Between sets a DJ playlist (collaborated with you) keeps the floor moving. We learn one custom first dance per booking.
Curfews, sound rules and any in-house production arrangements at Larmer Tree are managed by the estate’s own wedding team, and they vary by booking. Heritage-listed gardens in a rural setting often carry tighter outdoor-music rules and earlier cut-offs than a private barn. We don’t make assumptions. We confirm the specific cut-off, limiter setup and any house rules with the wedding coordinator the week before, and pace the closing set so it lands at the actual end of the night.
If you’re booking Larmer Tree Gardens and want a band that turns up briefed, properly dressed and with the dance floor firmly in mind, send us your date. We’d love to be on your shortlist.
Backbeat is an independent wedding band and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or a preferred supplier of Larmer Tree Gardens. Venue specifics should be confirmed with the venue’s wedding team directly.
From £1,900
Live sets · full PA & lighting · DJ between & after
Public liability insured · PAT-tested annually · Sound-limiter ready
Backbeat plays across Wiltshire, Dorset and the wider South coast. A snapshot of other well-known wedding venues within about an hour of Tollard Royal. If yours isn’t here, tell us anyway.
Mapperton
Beaminster
Lulworth Castle
East Lulworth
Pythouse
Tisbury
Syrencot
Amesbury
Almer Manor
Wimborne
Highcliffe Castle
Highcliffe
Sopley Mill
Christchurch
Babington House
Frome
Venue names are used for descriptive reference. Backbeat is an independent wedding band and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or a preferred supplier of any venue listed unless stated.
Send us the date. We’ll come back with availability and a tailored quote within 24 hours.
No obligation · usually a reply within 24 hours
Anything else, drop a line through the enquiry form.
Live music packages from £1,900. Pricing depends on event location, performance duration, and specific requirements. Send us your event details for a tailored quote.
We perform across Hampshire, Dorset, Surrey and beyond. Whether your event is across the country or abroad, we're ready to bring live performance to you.
We require a minimum of 90 minutes to load in and set up. Ideally before your guests enter the performance room, but we're skilled at setting up quietly and efficiently with minimal disruption.
Yes. We'll collaborate with you to create a personalised DJ playlist for before, between and after our live sets. Whether you have a specific genre, a list of favourite songs, or a Spotify playlist, we'll take care of the rest.
Yes. We offer a 60-minute acoustic live-lounge duo set, ideal for setting the ambiance during drinks reception or dinner.
Yes. We use high-quality, PAT-tested equipment for top-notch sound and lighting. The band is fully self-contained, and we're experienced with sound-limiter venues.
Absolutely. As part of our service we'll learn a special song at no extra cost, whether it's your first dance or a standout main-set moment. Let us know and we'll include it.