London Wedding String Quartet at the Barbican Centre – Although all the members of the Manor House String Quartet have played many times in the Barbican Hall as part of orchestral concerts, this time we were booked as a group to perform at a wedding in the Conservatory on the third level. It is a large area containing lots of tropical foliage and has an airy quality with good acoustics that made projection easy. Here is a video of the group playing ‘Sweet Dreams’ by Eurythmics:

We started with the pre ceremony music which became extensive due to a few delays but as we were situated on a balcony above the area where the guests were seated, it gave everyone a chance to really sit back and listen to the quartet whilst waiting for the wedding service to begin. After the ceremony itself, we continued through photographs and drinks with several couples sitting on a bench opposite us enjoying a private concert whilst they waited to be called out for photographs. As we were to continue on through the reception drinks and the first part of the wedding breakfast, it was certainly a very enjoyable but physically demanding day – after all, what pop or rock band would play solidly for four hours?

It was a real pleasure to play for this particular couple as their careful selection of modern pop songs for string quartet meant a great deal to them and we wish them every happiness for their future together.