Bridal Shower, Innsbrook Country Club, Merrillville, Indiana

This was my first time at Innsbrook Country Club, and I was so impressed! It is the perfect, sunny location to host a daytime event, and this shower was fantastic! The theme was the movie "My Best Friend's Wedding", and I played quite a bit of music from the movie - "What the World Needs Now", "Say a Little Prayer", "The Way You Look Tonight", and "I'll Never Fall in Love Again". Harp music can be a wonderful way to set the mood for you and your guests!

www.Harp123.com

Ceremony Harpist, County Line Orchard, Hobart, Indiana

Apple trees on one side, and shade trees on the other!

This venue was a revelation! County Line Orchards really has the perfect outdoor wedding figured out. I stopped in at the barn/reception venue to meet with the mother of the bride and check in with the wedding coordinator. The barn was super cute, and had all the facilities you need for (of course) the reception, but also a lovely ceremony if the weather was uncooperative. Next stop: one of their two wedding ceremony groves. As you can see, it was absolutely lovely. They even had the transportation down for the guests, like the hayrides of yore, but much neater!

 

If you need help putting together your perfect playlist, check my website for ideas! www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com 

The wedding grove is really private!

 

Fantastic transit via tractor!

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, At Home in Crown Point, Indiana

Home weddings are always intimate and relaxed, so definitely a terrific idea during a pandemic! This one was particularly memorable for me, because the groom turned out to be a musician, and he knew exactly what he wanted for his wedding. He chose "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica for the processional, and it was incredible. I did an arrangement for them, so I could get as close as possible to the original, including the opening guitar solo. Since the "aisle" was short, the groom decided to use the one song for everyone, and it was a great decision. It was smoother than changing songs, and it also let the song choice really sink in with the congregation. Making things special for the bride is always at the forefront of my thinking, so I brought the music down before her entrance, and started fresh when I saw her coming down the aisle. They recessed to the Smashing Pumpkin's "Tonight, Tonight", and it all just fit beautifully.

The decorations were so lovely!!

I have a large repertoire, but I am always happy to learn new music! Please see my website for the special request procedure at www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Barker Mansion, Michigan City, Indiana

The area for the wedding party is very distinctive!

It's always so much fun to see a new venue! The Barker Mansion is only about an hour from downtown Chicago, but it is not a site that I hear people talking about very often around here. The set up was really appealing - a courtyard with a brick and trellis area for the wedding party, and a lovely path from the main house. The courtyard was quiet, and there was convenient access to the mansion, also. If you have guests who need handicap access, there is an entrance directly to the garden, and a ramp. Everything needed for a magical ceremony!

The path has a little jog for the fountain, but that was 
kind of lovely in practice.

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Avalon Manor, Merrillville, Indiana

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This was my first time to Avalon Manor, but I frequently work in Northwest Indiana. This was a lovely ceremony where the mother of the bride took care of everything so that the bride could concentrate on just enjoying her day!

One of the things I liked best about Avalon Manor was the natural light from the big windows. The purple theme and the wonderful flowers looked terrific in the natural light!

The aisle was marked with
huge flower arrangements on pedestals!

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Deep River, Hobart, Indiana

A limited view at Deep River County Park

Okay, first of all, it was a beautiful wedding, so don't worry, but this location can really be a challenge. For this beautiful October day, they had weddings stacked up every two hours, and that is kind of a bigger deal than you would think. Essentially, you need everyone there right at the start of your 2 hours, but you can't start then, because....

1. Most everyone has set up to do. You will have to realistically evaluate how your friends and/or family will be with the set up, because you (being a member of the marrying couple) will likely be otherwise occupied. If you have a slightly bossy but super capable relative or friend, count your lucky stars and put them in charge. That's the sort of person you can base a schedule on!

2. How much prelude do you want your guests to hear? 15 minutes? 30 minutes? This can also be interpreted as how late do you suppose people will be? Lots of couples now plan that their wedding will start 15 minutes later than the time they tell their guests it will start. Seems fair enough to me!

3. How long will your wedding ceremony actually be? Everyone seems to think it will be about 30 minutes. Most of them turn out to be 15-20 minutes, but occasionally somebody's officiant really gets going and does 40 minutes. If your officiant is good, they know how long it will take and will not mind being asked!

4. How long do you need for pictures? This location is unforgiving if you run over, so you have to leave enough time if you want a lot of pictures at the Gazebo.

Luckily, this bride took all of this into account, and we were fine. No really good pictures, though, because there wasn't but a moment to spare as I moved my harp into place and began playing. You will have to take my word on the fact that it is a thrilling location. As the bride comes down the hill, it is always completely worth all the worry!

Ceremony Harpist, Deep River Park, Hobart, Indiana

The day was gray, but the plantings and gazebo already looked fantastic!

This was a thread the needle type of day for sure. I have been to Deep River County Park several times over the years, and it is truly beautiful, but on this day it looked like it was just going to rain and rain. In the end, it rained right up to a half an hour before their ceremony, then knocked off for about an hour or so, and then started up again! Whew!

Harpist's view of the sand ceremony table and the chairs.

Luckily, that was as much tense drama as there was. The bride chose "Endless Love" for the bridal party, and "Here Comes the Bride" for herself. For the sand ceremony, she had a lovely little melody from the "Romanza" movement of Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik", and we ended with the traditional Wedding March by Mendelssohn. For postlude, she requested "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz, and that brought the music to a close with an upbeat feel. Who even notices the storm clouds when the wedding is beautiful and the music is cheerful?

The path the wedding party use!

Interested in any of the songs mentioned in this post? They are all recorded on my YouTube channel, along with many other options!

Chicago Wedding Reception Harpist, Lost Marsh, Hammond, Indiana

Alas, a stolen photo.  This was the room I was in, and it was beautiful.
It was also filled with very early people by the time I got there, so no harp photo!

It is never too late to call and check on my availability. When the soon-to-be-married couple heard that the musicians they were expecting to play their reception were not going to be able to appear, they gave me a call. I just happened to have the date open, and I was happy to fill in. When someone calls last minute and I am not available, I always email them a list of other harpists, so there is help available regardless. If you really want to add live music to your wedding, it is generally just a matter of making enough calls, and getting someone to supply you with reliable people to contact!

Lost Marsh is a really lovely facility in Northwest Indiana, with expansive views in all directions. I was able to plug into the D.J.'s system, and I played popular music, mariachi music, and even a couple of the bride's favorite bossa novas.  When the calls come in at the last minute, the clients have to choose from the repertoire I already know, but I know a lot of music :)

I am pretty fast at returning emails, but you can always feel free to call, too. Sometimes (especially when things take an unexpected turn) it can be nice to hear an actual human voice!

Email:  reneewilsonharp@sbcglobal.net
Phone:  (773) 881.0706 or (312) 860.4997

Michigan City, Indiana Wedding Ceremony Harpist

Set up at New Creation Vineyard Christian Fellowship

The lovely bride felt a little stressed when she called, because she was planning a wedding at a remote location.  With family and friends spread over the midwest, she and her groom decided to pick a central location, find a church willing to host them, and make travel more equitable for all of those attending.  I travel to Northwest Indiana for a small additional fee, so it was no problem for me.  

As we began planning her music she confided that she had "no idea" what she wanted and felt like she might be unable to make appropriate choices.  A surprising number of brides actually feel that way!  My advice is always the same:  set aside a half an hour and listen to some of the selections on my website.  Keep track of the things you like and the things you don't.  Then, if it is still confusing, we can talk and usually work things out rather easily.  I will make some suggestions based on what you tell me, and things go fairly smoothly.  Or, you will be like this bride who, after listening to the short selections on my site, actually knew exactly what she wanted!  Music shouldn't be scary.  All it needs to do is support the mood that you are hoping for on your wedding day.  I promise not to make it harder than that!!

Visit my website at www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com to find sound samples that will make your music selection process easier!

Centennial Park Wedding Ceremony in Munster, Indiana

The perfect vantage point for any harpist!

I love Centennial Park in Munster!  What a beautiful location.  The park opened in 2007, so it is still fairly new on the scene, but (as you can see from the photos) most of the plantings are looking mature and wonderful.  The lakeside patio is completely handicapped accessible (staff were bringing some of the guests with mobility issues down on golf carts), and there is a dramatic staircase that the wedding party can use for their entrance.

The wedding party came down these two sets of stairs.

This bridal couple wanted to honor their hispanic heritage, so we went with "La Paloma Azul" (The Blue Dove) for the processional, "De Colores" for the recessional, and "Blue Bossa" for postlude.  

After the ceremony, everyone went up the hill for a cocktail reception at the gorgeous banquet facility overlooking the park.  This site is a real winner.

Just to show the really beautiful plantings!

Patrician Banquet Center (Shererville) Wedding Ceremony Harpist

Early May can certainly feature unpredictable weather, so I was thrilled when Friday turned out to be sunny and warm, and I was able to play in an outdoor venue I had never seen before!  I played at The Patrician Banquet Center in Shererville, Indiana.  Shererville is in Northwest Indiana, but is easily accessible (via a 45 minute drive) from downtown Chicago.  The Patrician is purely a banquet facility and features all of the conveniences that usually come with that business model, but they have one other delightful addition..... a gazebo area off of the back of the building!   The entire patio is truly lovely.  It is a bricked surface that was set up for 120 seated guests the day I played, but looked like it could accommodate more.  The gazebo is large, and actually featured a bench where the bridal couple could sit during the readings!

The bride added some additional outdoor decorations, and I thought this one was particularly charming:

These adorable tin cup flowers were hanging all along the fence.  

My camera didn't really capture the colors, which were white, yellow, and chartreuse.

This lovely bride also made a wonderfully smart decision on her wedding processional.  The patio did not feature a long walk, and the bride felt that her friends and family might very well become nervous and walk quite quickly!  To prepare for this, she chose just one processional for everyone:  Canon in D by Pachelbel.  It is indeed possible to vary things enough in this one piece to suit all of the people coming down the aisle, and still provide a sense of grandeur for the bride's entrance.  

All in all, it was a lovely start to the outdoor wedding season!  If you need music for your wedding, please visit my website, ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com, or call me directly at 773.881.0706.