Minneapolis Wedding Harpist | Minnesota Landscape Arboretum

When we booked an outdoor wedding for October in Minneapolis, we were worried about the weather.  There could have been snow, but we were extremely lucky to have an 80-degree afternoon at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chaska, MN.  It was so bright out that the bride wore sunglasses throughout the ceremony!

 

Jeff had never been to the Twin Cities, so we arrived the night before and spent the morning of the wedding exploring the area.  This is as close as we get to a paid vacation!

The ceremony took place in the rose garden, surrounded by trees showcasing their fall colors.  The reds, oranges and yellows were reflected in the bridal party flowers and in splashes of red in the bride's gown. 

Before the ceremony, we played primarily popular songs, such as:

• Longer (Dan Fogelberg)
• One Song from "Snow White"
• Our Love is Here to Stay (George Gershwin)
• Storybook Love from "The Princess Bride"
• Till There was You from "The Music Man"
• Your Song (Elton John)

The venue shuttled guests to the site, and late arrivals and traffic to the garden delayed the ceremony nearly half an hour.  No problem for us - we had plenty of music to keep going until everyone arrived and the ceremony was ready to go ahead!

The bride wanted to use the same song for the entrance of the bridal party and for her own processional ("Song of Memory" from Final Fantasy IX).  To enhance her entrance, we added vocals to the harp duet (well, I did - Jeff won't sing!).

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the bride had arranged a musical surprise for the groom - they recessed to "Throne Room" - the theme from the end of Star Wars IV.  And yes, we can play it on the harp!  It took a few seconds for the guests to figure out what they were hearing, but you could hear the murmurs of excitement as they placed the song.  And the groom loved it!  We followed that with "Princess Leia's Theme" and other upbeat pieces as the guests headed off to the receiving line.

After the ceremony, the shuttles had to make several trips to take all of the guests to the reception.  We kept playing through the receiving line, and then spent some time with the guests (young and young at heart!), answering their questions about the harp.  We love giving kids a chance to pluck a few strings - it's not a chance they're likely to get again!

We are available to travel for your wedding anywhere in the US, or internationally for destination weddings.  Contact us at 1-877-HARP-578 or visit our website (http://www.theclassicharpist.com/) for more information.