If ever the job of wedding harpist earned combat pay, this one deserved it! After an unbelievably hot summer, the weather finally cooled off, and it looked like it would be comfortable to play outside for once. The ceremony was set to take place on Silver Beach in St. Joseph, Michigan.
The closer I got to the beach, the more the wind was picking up and trees were swaying. I knew I was in trouble when I saw people heading to the beach with surfboards!
As usual, I was the first to arrive to get set up before the guests came. It was so windy, I couldn’t take my hands off the harp. What you don’t see in the picture is my leg wrapped around the music stand to keep it from tipping over! Even with music clips, the whole book of sheet music kept blowing away.
The wedding party was small – only a maid of honor, best man, flower girl and ring bearer. They entered to the traditional Irish tune “Danny Boy.” The bride chose Enya’s “Only Time” for her processional.
Once the ceremony concluded, they exited to “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Rogers & Hammerstein’s musical, Carousel. By the time I had finished that piece, all of the guests had left the beach to get out of the wind. This goes on record as the shortest postlude ever!
Yes, it is possible to play the harp on a beach. If you can provide me with a 4’x4′ platform on which to place the harp, I will bring the Laurel Leaf lever harp you see pictured here. If that’s not possible, I have a Celtic harp that can be placed on the sand itself:
Since it us up on legs, the sand doesn’t affect the instrument. I’m happy to provide music for beach weddings anywhere on Lake Michigan – just hope for a less windy day!