chamber music
professional chamber musicians for all occasions
professional chamber musicians for all occasions
Seven Springs Resort
Although it is far from Pittsburgh – it is a great place for weddings! We have never been here in the winter, mostly in the summer and early fall. The facilities for weddings are incredible, especially if you plan on a large wedding. Acoustically, though, it is not the best since most floors are carpeted and dampen the sound. We have done a few outdoor weddings with a string quartet and some with a trio. It is not an “intimate” setting but rather a “loud-spoken” place. At times it was difficult to find coordinators who would guide us where to go, but overall the place is well run.
Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
This is one of our favorite places to perform, our musicians have played here many times for weddings and receptions in the gardens and outside by the fountains. Absolutely beautiful settings for weddings! The staff is very professional and efficient with complete understanding of how to run a big event. They were very helpful in setting our musicians for playing, and finding shade if we were outside. The fountains could be loud during the ceremony but at your request they can be shut down, even though they look beautiful. If your wedding or other event is in the outdoor garden, you also get a spectacular view of University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning, and if you get a chance – visit the garden inside – they are definitely unique. This is also the only place where it rained on musicians even though we were indoors – the wedding ceremony was taking place in one of the smaller gardens, and rain was so hard that it was coming through the gaps in the roof!
Penn State University
On July 25th myself and my colleague cello player played at a small gathering at Penn State University, Eberly Campus in Uniontown, PA. It was an open house for the University House which has an interesting history, going back to 1850’s. Originally, it was a farm house on the Wood farm. The Wood family purchased the farm from the son of Christopher Gist in the 1740’s. The land was part of a settlement awarded Christopher Gist by King George the Third of England for his service as a guide for General Braddock during the French and Indian war. The house had eight different owners before becoming part of the Penn State in 1967. Amazing how little places can hold a lot of history, not far from your own house! It was a very pleasant place to perform, with gardens all around us. Unfortunately, we had to play inside due to the unexpected rain, but I did get a chance to go outside during a break when it stopped raining and look around – it is such a beautiful and peaceful place! The people we played for were so welcoming and appreciative of our playing, we felt very comfortable and at home. It was one of our more memorable performances. I saved the program from the open house with its’ history, and here is the sketch of the house. The second photo was taken inside the Community Center where we played for the second time. I thought it was a neat picture of treble clef and music staff!
