It's that time of the year again: vows are being made, rings are being exchanged, and knots are being tied. I just got back from playing for Wen and Eric's wedding back in Richmond, and I must say, it was a lovely ceremony. And the music was spectacular, if I do say so myself. The actual wedding took a little longer than most, since it was done in both Chinese and English, but who can complain when the reception was filled with ridiculously delicious food? Not I.
On my drive back to C-ville, I got to thinking about all the weddings I've played for in my life. Here are, in no particular order, my top three memorable weddings:
Janice and Danny. The two met through First Year Players, a student-run theater group at UVA. Instead of using cliche wedding songs like Trumpet Voluntary, Canon in D, and Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring, Janice and Danny appropriately decided to use songs from various plays that meant something to the both of them. The prelude pieces were all songs from musicals that they had worked on together, Janice entered to Processional and Maria from The Sound of Music, and the wedding party recessed to Oklahoma from... well, Oklahoma!
Caroline and Erik. Coming from a very musically talented family, Caroline would have nothing but the best at her wedding. Like Janice, she decided to opt out of the traditional wedding repertoire and chose more unique pieces, albeit still in the classical genre. The bridesmaids and groomsmen entered to The Wedding March from The Marriage of Figaro, Caroline walked down the aisle to Autumn from The Four Seasons, and the recessional piece was Kreisler's Liebesfreud, a violin and piano duet. Talk about a classy affair.
Jane and John Doe. I don't even remember the name of this couple, because I didn't know them personally. They hired me because I was the church pianist at Mount Hermon Baptist Church at the time, and I never saw them again. I couldn't have been more than 14 or 15 at the time because, as I recall, my mom had to drive me to the wedding. The only reason this wedding stands out in my memory is that the ceremony was supposed to start at 2pm, but the bride, groom, and entire wedding party didn't show up until 2:20pm. Here's to hoping that Jane and John are still together...
3 comments:
Yes! I made the list! Long live my wedding!
lol sam...i didnt even understand your reason for why you still remembered the wedding "they didnt show up until 2:20 when the wedding was supposed to be at 2". ive gotten used to weddings where the ceremony starts an hour late, once an hour and a half late...
Wow, Sam, I'm so flattered! I found my handwritten list (in pencil on lined paper) of the music you and I chose about a year ago and am planning to include it in my wedding album, if I ever get around to putting it together. You certainly made the music part of Danny's and my wedding fun. Thanks!
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