Warbrook House Wedding String Quartet – Last Saturday, our wedding string quartet played in the beautiful setting of Warbook House in Hampshire. We began by performing some pre-ceremony music as the guests were being seated, prior to the bride entering. When she did, it was to ‘It’s All About You’ by the band McFly, arranged for string quartet at her request, especially for the occasion.

The theme of using modern songs for string quartet continued during the signing of the register, when the couple had requested the Beach Boys classic song ‘God Only Knows’ as well as a song by the band Lifehouse called ‘You and Me’. ‘God Only Knows’ for string quartet is a really beautiful arrangement and brings out the wonderful qualities of the song, with a gently lilting pizzicato cello line and spiky repeated violin notes to accompany the main melody (you can hear a sample of our quartet playing it on our Playlist page). Both pieces were very much appreciated by the assembled wedding guests. The couple then exited the ceremony to Elbow’s immensely popular ‘One Day Like This’ again for string quartet (you can hear us performing it below),¬† and we followed the wedding party out to perform a selection of upbeat and contemporary music for string quartet during the drinks reception.

As it was the hottest day of the year thus far, we positioned ourselves under the shade of a tree, close to many guests who enjoyed our music. It was a particular treat to be able to play for a couple whose wedding we had played for some years ago. They were especially delighted when we performed a request for them (Aerosmith’s ‘Don’t Want To Miss A Thing’), a piece which had been a happy memory for them at their own wedding!

When planning a wedding, it’s always a good idea to have a think about where the musicians will be playing, making sure that they aren’t exposed to direct sunlight. It may be that the venue owns its own gazebo or can provide shade from an umbrella, or a tree can sometimes provide the necessary cover. To find out a little more about this and many other questions relating to hiring a string quartet, take a look at our FAQs page.