Northern Wisconsin Harpist ~ Wedding Music in Hayward, WI

Elyse & Eric were married at her parents' lake house in Northern Wisconsin.  I was thrilled to be playing harp for their ceremony, and was joined by jazz violinist Randy Sabien from Hayward.  The ceremony took place on their back deck overlooking Whitefish Lake, near the small town of Stone Lake, WI.  The rain held off, and they were able to have the outdoor ceremony as planned!

Photo:  Stonehouse Photo

The bride requested mostly popular and contemporary music for the prelude, including:

• Can You Feel the Love Tonight from The Lion King
• Can't Help Falling in Love 
• Edelweiss from The Sound of Music
• Schubert's Ave Maria
• What a Wonderful World
• Keeper of the Stars
• When You Say Nothing at All

She chose Somewhere Over the Rainbow for the seating of families, and Fields of Gold for the bridal party processional.  Her entrance music was more traditional - Canon in D by Pachelbel.

The ceremony was officiated by the bride's godmother, which made it very personal for the couple.  For the recessional, she wanted something "uplifting," and chose All You Need is Love by the Beatles for the exit from the ceremony.

A brief cocktail hour at the lake house followed the ceremony before everyone left (by school bus!) for the reception in Hayward.  The bride's only request for post-ceremony music was When a Man Loves a Woman.  We filled in the remaining time with other popular pieces, such as You Raise Me Up, Embraceable You, Happy Together, I Love How You Love Me, and Somewhere in Time.

As a professional harpist, I frequently travel throughout the Midwest and beyond for wedding ceremonies and receptions.  To find out more about having me play the harp for your special day, visit my website:  Wisconsin Harpist.  

Hudson, Wisconsin Wedding Harpist

While I was playing for a ceremony in Fort Wayne, Jeff was further north at a wedding in western Wisconsin.  We've had bad luck with driving through Wisconsin in the past (most notably the year when the floods were so bad that they closed down I-94 from Madison to Wisconsin Dells, and we were left trying to get to LaCrosse using back roads in the pre-GPS era!), so he left on Friday afternoon to make sure there would be no surprises on the route!

The ceremony was held at Prospect Park in Hudson, WI.  It was a beautiful venue, especially on a crisp fall afternoon.

During the prelude, Jeff played a mix of popular and classical selections, including:

• All I Ask of You from Phantom of the Opera
• Fields of Gold by Sting
• I See You My Beloved ~ a Czech-Bohemian folk song
• Arioso by Bach
• Pavane Style Renaissance by Wachs
• Reverie by Grandjany

The ceremony began with the seating of the families to Schubert's "Ave Maria".  The group of 7 bridesmaids processed to Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring", followed by the bride, who entered to "Canon in D".  

During the unity candle ceremony, Jeff played the traditional Irish tune "Down by the Salley Gardens".  The recessional was an upbeat "Trumpet Tune" - one of Jeff's personal favorites!  And even though it was in Wisconsin, there were no on-the-road disasters.  Now that we have a GPS and AAA membership, we're ready for anything!