First Wedding Gig

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This topic has 17 replies, 13 voices, and was last updated 17 years, 2 months ago by helen-rudd.

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May 18, 2009 at 11:44 pm #160340

Sidney Dharmavaram
Participant

I am playing my first wedding gig in about a month.

May 19, 2009 at 2:27 am #160341

joan-steinberg
Participant

Once the bride is up front you gracefully end your wedding march.

May 19, 2009 at 1:51 pm #160342

Sidney Dharmavaram
Participant

That’s what I feared.

May 19, 2009 at 7:32 pm #160343

sherry-lenox
Participant

Please don’t fear! You don’t have to know a lot of theory. All you need to do is end a phrase, play a V/7 chord followed by a I chord, and you’re done.

Trust me, no one who is listening will know that you didn’t play the processional exactly as it was written. It really and truly isn’t necessary to practice several different wrap up points.

May 20, 2009 at 3:03 pm #160344

Sidney Dharmavaram
Participant

After practicing yesterday, I think what I may end up doing is skip the middle section of the Wagner.

May 20, 2009 at 3:49 pm #160345

diane-michaels
Participant

The rule of thumb is to play to the end of your contract or until the room is empty, whichever comes first, provided you aren’t playing the cocktail hour.

May 21, 2009 at 12:10 am #160346

Cheryl Z.
Participant

Hi Sherry,

Can the V/7 chord followed by a 1 chord be used to end any song?

May 21, 2009 at 12:13 am #160347

jennifer-buehler
Member

For an “Amen” ending to a hymn it’s a IV-I chord.

Jennifer

May 21, 2009 at 9:43 pm #160348

Cheryl Z.
Participant

Thanks Jennifer!

Cheryl

May 23, 2009 at 2:27 pm #160349

Sidney Dharmavaram
Participant

Get this!

May 23, 2009 at 2:40 pm #160350

barbara-brundage
Participant

Both her requests, no Wagner, and Canon for the Bride, are actually very common, Sidney. You should find out which part of the Canon she wants, though, since you probably won’t have time to play much of it; does she want the slow part or the faster part?

May 23, 2009 at 6:43 pm #160351

tonie-ogimachi
Participant

The nice thing about using the Canon for the processional is that you can be quite flexible about the length of it, and the pacing works well for making an entrance. I also like to use Monteclair’s “Air” from “Festes de l’Eté” as an alternative to Wagner’s Bridal March. It has a “grand march” sound, and is also easier to end in various places. There’s an easy version in one of the “Medieval to Modern” books, and Suzanne Balderston’s Wedding Book has a version of this piece, too.

June 18, 2009 at 10:37 pm #160352

lorraine-wiley
Participant

Hi,

June 18, 2009 at 10:58 pm #160353

Sidney Dharmavaram
Participant

The secret is that I have been performing since I was at least 8.

July 30, 2009 at 12:46 am #160354

unknown-user
Participant

I’m about to play my first wedding too, in a few months. Luckily, the bride (a close friend) gave me plenty of time to practice. She also wants Paco Bell’s Canon but she asked me if I could integrate it with– get this– the DJ. I love her too dearly to contradict her musical choice at her own wedding, so I said yes immediately and regretted it as soon as I started thinking on the way home. Have any of you done this before? It is this DJ http://www.gatheringguide.com/ec/bands_djs_entertainment.html and he’ll be playing CDs. I’m not sure which song yet– the bride still has to make up her mind. Do you have any suggestions? Does it seem feasible? Thank you,

sarah
Author

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