Wedding singer at Ware Priory, Hertfordshire
Jack and Michelle's wedding started at Ware Priory and then got on a boat, which makes it the most unusual booking I have taken as a wedding singer in Hertfordshire. The ceremony was at the priory, and the afternoon reception was three hours on the water heading for Stanstead Abbots.
The set list
What I played at Ware Priory
Every one of these is from my write-up of the day itself, for Jack and Michelle. Your day would be built from your own choices on the planning call.
The Only Exception by Paramore, instrumental
Michelle's walk down the aisle
Hotel California by The Eagles, instrumental
the couple's exit
Craig David
on the boat
Hey Ya by Outkast
on the boat
Mr Brightside
on the boat
Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran
first dance
When I played there
Jack and Michelle, May 2018
On a sweltering day in May I played Jack and Michelle's ceremony at Ware Priory, then the afternoon reception on the boat, including their first dance.
Around 50 friends and family came along for the trip. The professional team at Lee and Stort Boats greeted the wedding party, ran the bar and made sure the whole thing went smoothly.
The rooms
The rooms, and what they do to sound
The ceremony was in the priory's ceremony room, and the couple were showered with confetti as they came out of it. Michelle had asked for instrumental pieces to walk in and out to, so my job in that room was two guitar arrangements rather than anything sung.
Then the venue stopped being a building. I moved my equipment onto the tug boat and set up before guests started to embark, which is a very different problem from wheeling a PA across a car park: everything has to be secured, positioned once and left there, because there is nowhere to move to for the next three hours.
The trip lasted roughly three hours and I played two extended sets during it. Speeches happened onboard, after a safety briefing before departure. We docked again at Ware Priory, and the couple and their guests moved on to The Saracens Head in Ware as their evening guests arrived.
How the day ran
What Jack and Michelle booked
It was quite a young group, so the boat sets leaned on my more contemporary covers. Mapped onto the parts I sell, Jack and Michelle booked the ceremony, the afternoon reception and the first dance.
- Ceremony£400
30 to 40 minutes
- Afternoon drinks reception£500
45 to 60 minutes
- Your first dance£300
One song
The practical bits
Access, power and getting set up
A wedding on the water means the PA has to be carried on, set up before anyone boards, and stay put. There is no second trip to the van. I will call your coordinator, ask about access, power and any sound limiter, so a day like this is planned rather than improvised.
The full write-up from the day: Jack and Michelle's day at Ware Priory.
For coordinators
- One musician, one guitar, one mic stand, one PA. Footprint about 2m by 1m.
- Sets up in twenty minutes, packs down in twenty.
- Battery-powered PA available where there is no power.
- Public liability insurance, certificate sent to the venue on request.
- I will ring you the week before to sort out access, power and any sound limiter.
- I will always have a plan for the weather changing its mind.
Proof
What couples say
I can't edit these. Go and look.
Availability
Playing at Ware Priory?
Send me the date and I'll tell you within 24 hours whether I'm free. No deposit, no obligation.
Or call me on 07739 469321