Musicians Gallery….
Some of the weddings we enjoy playing for most of all are those where the acoustics of the venue are such that quartet can really be heard during the wedding reception - and this weekend up in the musicians gallery at Kingscote Barn in Tetbury was a really good example.
A musicians gallery (or ‘minstrels gallery’) is a form of balcony often found in stately homes, castles or great halls where the musicians can play literally near the ceiling above the guests, allowing the sound to drift downwards and fill the room. From a purely practical point of view, when we’re playing up there, we’re out of the way of waiting staff and guests milling about, but the sound of the strings projects so much more easily it can be heard well above the sound of people chatting and enjoying themselves.
We’ve noticed that it’s even possible for couples to book us as a string duo (which would normally be suited in terms of volume for smaller weddings) and it’s still heard clearly in a larger crowd, simply because there’s a little bit of elevation. When deciding between a string quartet or a string duo for a wedding, it’s worth couples bearing in mind that if there’s a minstrels gallery, sweeping staircase or any kind of balcony above the room where the wedding breakfast will be held, the acoustics may be so good that a duo is clearly audible, despite a larger number of guests.
When couples have budgeted for a string quartet to play at their wedding, often spent months choosing a perfect list of music that they’d like us to play and we’ve worked hard to prepare and rehearse all their requests, it’s especially pleasing to really be heard clearly and guests regularly pop upstairs before leaving at the end of our set to tell us how much they enjoyed the music.
Of course - we do also play at floor level and if there’s no gallery available, some venues erect a small platform or stage for us (which also works well), or have us playing at the top of a staircase during a drinks reception - either way, adding a little bit of height gives the acoustics a huge helping hand.
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