Michigan Wedding Music ~ Harpist at the Shadowland Pavilion, Silver Beach

I love weekday weddings - especially for brides who are planning their ceremony in a popular destination.  This Thursday evening ceremony was held in the Shadowland Pavilion on Silver Beach in St. Joseph, Michigan.  Many of their family and friends made the trip to Southwest Michigan from Texas, so the holiday week was perfect timing for an extended wedding trip.

Amy & Art had definite ideas about their wedding music!  Most of the pieces they wanted were already a part of my harp repertoire, but they also had a couple of special requests that were important to them.  During the prelude, it was mostly popular music:

• Clocks by Coldplay
• I'm Yours by Jason Mraz
• Just Haven't Met You Yet by Michael Buble
• At Last by Etta James
• Sea of Love by the Honeydrippers
• Going to the Chapel by The Shirelles
• Ode to Joy by Beethoven

They chose more traditional options for the processionals ("Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" for the families and "Canon in D" for the bridal party).  The bride's entrance music was the Beatles song "Here Comes the Sun".  The couple's dog, Buddy, did an outstanding job as ring bearer!

Amy & Art really put a lot of thought into their ceremony, and it was personalized by their officiant, Rev. Laura Sumner Truax from Chicago.  As the service began, they had family members read the names of loved ones who had passed away or were not able to make the trip.  I accompanied a cousin of the bride singing the Louis Armstrong song "What a Wonderful World". 

They had a different take on the popular sand ceremony.  Instead of combining two different colors of sand, they combined sand from the beach of Lake Michigan (where the bride spent many summers) with that from South Padre Island (where the groom grew up), topping it off with rocks and shells from both locations.  During the sand ceremony, they requested "Marry Me" by Train.

Just before they were pronounced husband and wife, the families of the bride and groom performed a lasso ceremony, a Hispanic custom that signifies the joining of the two families at the wedding.  For the recessional, I accompanied a friend of the family singing "Love Will Keep Us Together" by Captain and Tennille.  The recessional stayed upbeat with "All You Need is Love", "You Want to Make a Memory", "A Thousand Miles" and "Collide".

Southwest Michigan is full of beautiful beach-side wedding venues!  The harp is the perfect instrument for a wedding ceremony on (or near) the beach.  Please visit my website, Southwest Michigan Wedding Music, for information on including the beauty of harp music in your wedding plans!