Cocktail Hour Harpist, Hilton Chicago/Oak Brook Hills Resort

The cocktail hour and ceremony space overlooking the pond.

Frankly, we were lucky it wasn't super hot the day of the event. I think the Oak Brook Hills Resort is an absolutely beautiful venue, but there is really not a lick of shade where all of the tables were set up. There is some shade down by the pond where I was, but I think this is something anyone who is planning an event here might want to consider. Additionally, there was some music from the pool area directly to the east. I am not shy. I went over and politely asked them to turn off the music (which they did), but not everyone is as pushy as I am, so there's also that. In the plus column, boy is there room to roam at this venue, and I bet they have everything to keep all of your guests happy throughout the entire wedding weekend. Also, the bride requested "Despacito", so that's up and running for everybody else now, and it sounds great on harp!

The pond that is overlooked!

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Fisherman's Inn, Elburn

The gorgeous ceremony room. the windows continue all the way down
the left, and give you a panoramic view.

I at Fisherman's Inn years ago when it was a restaurant, but this venue is a revelation now that it is a designated wedding venue. It had been raining (basically the ongoing story of 2019), and the bride decided to move everything indoors. In many ways, it wasn't a big compromise. I think their ceremony room does an amazing job of bringing the view indoors. The cocktail room is directly above the ceremony room (no pictures, sorry), and features a lovely deck overlooking everything. Apparently, they only host one wedding at a time, so all of this is yours and only yours. Wow.

Okay, so the guests were already in the cocktail space (so no photo),
but I took a photo for you from the elevator. Best elevator view ever.

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, St. Michael's, Chicago

Just really lovely.

I generally play at St. Michael's in Old Town a few times a year and, although I don't always post, it is a distinct pleasure to play there. The musician's they use are such a delight, and they have their own wedding coordinator, so things happen in a timely, super organized way. 

One of the things that I have come to really enjoy, though, is their penchant for doing a few weddings right around St. Patrick's Day. We play exclusively Irish music for the prelude, and often do "Lady of Knock" for the flower offering to Mary. It is a really fun way to celebrate a marriage in an outstanding historic church.

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Eaglewood Resort, Itasca

The lanterns along the aisle looked terrific,
especially as it got darker!

Okay, so probably they were hoping for snow. Not at all unreasonable for a December 22nd wedding. In the end, it was one of the warmer Decembers on record, and this particular day was really sunny. So essentially, even winter time brides can get thrown a curve by the weather! Luckily, the Eaglewood Resort is really amazing, and the wedding party and all of their guests had tons of amenities at their fingertips, so everyone had a terrific time regardless of the weather.

This bride chose Storybook love from "The Princess Bride" for her walk down the aisle, and it worked wonderfully, per usual! She wanted quite a bit of music during her ceremony, so she chose 3 selections to go under 3 separate readings, and I think it was really effective. She had Can't Help Falling in Love, Hallelujah, and Beauty and the Beast, but lots of other songs could've worked as well. The basic premise was #1 pick a reading about love, #2 pick a song about love, #3 enjoy! 

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Ceremony Harpist, Katherine Legge Lodge, Hinsdale

The wonderful upstairs room at the Lodge

I've played downstairs at the Katherine Legge Lodge before, but this was my first trip upstairs. It was an absolutely beautiful room for a late fall wedding. The only drawback is that it is not handicap accessible (no elevator to the upstairs), so you will want to keep that in mind. Other than that, the facility is really amazing. Lots of comfortable rooms in a large park setting. It is a Hinsdale Park District Facility, and their website has a lot of great pictures showing the possibilities at this venue.

The bride chose "Marry Me" by Train for her processional, and it worked beautifully. Her sons walked her down the aisle, and there wasn't a dry eye in the place!

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Girl and the Goat, Chicago

Private dining at Girl and the Goat

So, the sensible course of action would've been not to have live music because, honestly, there wasn't what you would call an abundance of space. No matter. There are some venues that just make it work, cheerfully and smoothly, and that is the way they roll at Girl and the Goat. There was some pre-planning with the restaurant where we discussed how much room I really needed, and they told me what was possible. Then a ride down in the Adele-evator (Adele apparently used the elevator when she dined in the private room, hence the moniker), and there I was. No one could really get past me, but the staff cheerfully worked around, and the guests seemed absolutely delighted to come into this cozy space and find live music. The bride entered with her father to "Can't Help Falling in Love", and it was really lovely. If you need an intimate space with amazing food and service, this should definitely be in the running.

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com

Wedding Ceremony Harpist, Galleria Marchetti, Chicago

See that chair on the left? That was supposed to be mine!

Yep, it rained. The garden area at Galleria Marchetti still looked really lovely, and it was dry under the canopy, but it was pretty cold. The bride decided to keep everyone comfortable and dry, but they were still able to get some lovely pictures outside after the ceremony. I mean, really, here I am telling you that it was kind of miserable out, but my amateur photos still make everything look pretty magical, right? Well, Galleria Marchetti really delivers when the weather is nasty.

This wedding was unusual because the bride decided to add violin just a couple of weeks before the wedding. She saw a video of violinist Jacob Murphy and I playing, and we were delighted to add that special touch to her wedding. We played "Marry Me" by Train, and "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz, and warmed everything right up!

The lovely view outside the tent

Set up in the corner of the tent. Better tent pictures are available on their website!

www.ChicagoWeddingHarpist.com