Magical Wedding Venue.

Lovely solo wedding today at Higher Holcombe by Ottery St Mary. A rustic countryside wedding venue with lots of character and atmosphere. The perfect setting for 'Concerning Hobbits' from Lord of The Rings for the brides entrance. I also played a brand new arrangement of 'The Book of Love' by Peter Gabriel which is such a beautiful melody. I played a range of chilled out tunes and movie themes while the wedding guests had a drink and some photos and a good catch up. Lovely day. #WeddingViolinist #musiciandevon #dawlishfiddler

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Drinks Receptions at Shilstone House and The Rougemont Hotel

Shilstone Weddings. Some pictures from yesterday afternoons drinks reception at Shilstone House. A nice relaxed occasion while guests have a drink and catch up with each other. I put together a set list of popular upbeat songs that guests recognise (and sometimes sing along to). Having live music at this point in your wedding day adds a nice touch to the day. Thank you for all your lovely feedback and kind words afterwards. It was a pleasure!  After this gig it was a short journey up to Exeter and the Rougement Hotel to meet up with the Exe valley String Quartet to play for a very special dinner. It was the 15th wedding anniversary for a couple that the quartet played for at their wedding ceremony all those years ago.  It was a very intimate and romantic evening full of emotion and love. Love working as a violinist in Devon. #weddingviolinist #dawlishfiddler #exevalleystringquartet www.musiciandevon.co.uk

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First visit to Bicton Park and Botanical gardens

This was my first ever visit to Bicton Park Botanical Gardens and despite the damp weather it is an absolutely stunning place. Such a pretty venue to have your wedding. Unfortunately the rain got the better of us so we somehow squeezed 70 people into the palm house with all the plants! It was a cozy ceremony! I got to play a couple of my new arrangements today, 'Come with me' by Norah Jones is such a beautiful melody that is perfect for the violin. Also 'It must be Love' by madness which got everyone singing and dancing. The drinks ceremony ended with lots of dancing and singing to a set of upbeat, well known somngs and tunes. #weddingviolinist #musiciandevon #dawlishfiddler

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EVSQ at Huntsham Court Country House

A glorious wedding @Huntsham Court Country House, Devon today. We played outside as the wedding was held in the beautiful Dovecote (have you seen the ceiling )
The bridesmaids and mothers of the bride and groom walked down the aisle to ‘At Last’ by Etta James and then we seamlessly slipped into ‘The Bridal Chorus’ by Wagner for the entrance of the bride. The bride and groom requested ‘Only us’ by Dear Evan Hansen for the signing of the register, which worked really well for strings. Drinks were on the lawn as we played a variety of pop, jazz and even some AC/DC!!
Love our job!

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Wedding at the Castle in Powderham!

Busy few days. Solo Violinist wedding this afternoon at the very beautiful Powderham. Lovely wedding ceremony and drinks reception in the rose garden. It was a wedding where timing of the music was so important. The bridesmaids walked in to 'You Raise Me Up' and then I subtly went into 'Lean On Me' for the entrance of the Bride. For the signing of the register I played 'You are the Reason' by Callum Scott and Lily Allen's 'Somewhere Only We know'. The exit music today was 'Marry You' by Bruno Mars and then I played for another hour or so while the photos were taken and the guests caught up over drinks. Love my job! #devonviolinist #weddingviolinist www.musiciandevon.co.uk

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EVSQ at the Kingston Estate Totnes.

Lovely afternoon out playing at Kingston Estate Weddings near Totnes with Exe Valley String Quartet. In a beautiful setting the bridal party walked down the isle to 'A Thousand Years' and danced out to 'Shut up and dance'. For the signing of the register we had the opportunity to play a couple of new arrangements, 'A sky full of stars' by Coldplay and 'Rewrite the stars' from The Greatest Showman. A lovely wedding in a beautiful setting. #weddingquartet www.exevalleystringquartet.co.uk

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Back to Rockbeare as a soloist.

I seem to have taken up residency at the very beautiful Rockbeare Manor after another wedding yesterday in the Devon sunshine. This time I was there playing as a solo violinist for the wedding of Jade and Michael. A lovely outdoor wedding by the Pavillion, Jade and her bridesmaids walked down the isle to 'Can you feel the love tonight' and I arranged 'Turning Page' by Sleeping at Last' for solo violin for the signing of the register. The wedding party made their exit to 'Love me like you do'. I then played for an hour or so while the guests caught up with each other over a glass of bubbly. A really enjoyable day. #musiciandevon #devonviolinist #weddingviolinist. www.musiciandevon.com

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Exe Valley String Quartet and Roderick Williams OBE

We are so fortunate to work with some top musicians. I was busy yesterday but my quartet friends Exe Valley String Quartet accompanied Roderick Williams OBE for a classical wedding in Totnes. Roderick is a well known baritone and composer and he arranged a bespoke version of Ave Maria for the wedding ceremony.

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Debut gig at Glebe Barn Weddings, Devon.

Road trip for the quartet today. This was our first ever visit to Glebe Barn Weddings. What a stunning venue in the very heart of Devon and perfect for a wedding. We played a brand new arrangement of 'I like you better' by Lauv for the brides entrance followed by some classic tunes 'Iris' and 'Can't help falling in love with you' for the signing and we ended the ceremony with 'I'm Yours'. Then we played for an hour or so for the drinks reception with the stunning Devon countryside as our back drop. Fab venue. Congratulations Layla and Liam.

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Back on the road as a soloist! Loved it!

Back out on the road as a solo violinist today. Really enjoyed playing at Brickhouse Vineyard for a small intimate wedding ceremony. Today was a nice surprise for the brides mother who used to play the violin. My versatility was put to the test today playing the Imperial March from Star Wars and then discreetly merging into Pachabels Canon for the brides entrance!! Cool idea. I then went to the other extreme and played Sweet Child of Mine for the exit of the bridal party and guests. #weddingviolinist #dawlishfiddler #musiciandevon.

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Traditional Church Wedding with Exe Valley String Quartet.

What a lovely Easter wedding at St.John’s Church in Bishipsteignton. The sun was shining and the music was glorious. The quartet played a range of pop hits with a new favourite ‘It must be Love’ by Madness for the exit of the bride and groom. Congratulations to the happy couple.

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Exe Valley String Quartet at Deer Park.

It is the Spring which means we are now back visiting beautiful wedding venues all over Devon. Yesterday we started the year at one of our favourite and most visited venues Deer Park Country House. A lovely wedding in the spring sunshine. The music requests included 'Wildest Dreams' by Taylor Swift, the theme from The Champions League and 'Shut up and Dance' to send the guests on their way to their drinks reception. Its so good to be back playing as a quartet after our short break and lovely to hear all the positive feedback. Looking forward to a very busy summer season.

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Winter Wedding at Rockbeare Manor.

One final wedding today at Rockbeare Manor this time as a solo violinist. Lovely atmosphere and decorations to make it feel very festive. Some beautiful music choices today including Taylor Swift's 'Lover', Beauty and the Beast and Can you feel the love tonight. Lovely audience who were very appreciative, we even had a couple have a dance as well. Time to give the violin a well earned rest now until next year.

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EVSQ - Winter Wedding on a farm.

Yesterday we played our last wedding of the year at the very beautiful Higher Eggbeer Farm. It felt very Christmassy in the barn with the twinkling lights and roaring fires. The bride walked in to ‘The most beautiful girl in the world’ by Prince and we played ‘Dancing in the kitchen’ by Lany for the bride and groom’s exit.

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Stormy Wedding in Tavistock.

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We braved the stormy weather yesterday and took a road trip over the moors to beautiful (but windy) Tavistock. A lovely winter wedding in the iconic town hall. The bride walked into the theme from 'A Little Chaos' which is a great string piece. We also played I Giorni and Sweet Disposition - a real mixture of pieces and genres. We have one more winter wedding next Saturday and then we have a well earned break in January and February.

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Autumn Vibes at Deer Park Hotel.

A lovely autumnal wedding today. Off to Deer Park Hotel nr Honiton again today to play in the October sunshine in their beautiful summer garden. 'I can't help falling in love with you' for the brides entrance, 'Runaway' by The Corrs and 'Kiss Me' by Sixpence non the Richer for the signing of the register. The Corrs music suits the electric violin perfectly! L-O-V-E to finish and then a set of lively upbeat pop and rock tunes while the guests had photos and drinks. Nice to be back at Deer Park Hotel again.

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Congratulations to Vikki and Ian.

It was an absolute privilege to play for the wedding of Vikki and Ian yesterday at Deer Park Country House. Vikki is a good friend of mine from the music scene in the South West of England. It was a beautiful day in a stunning setting. Music requests included 'One Day Like This', 'We Have All The Time In The World' and 'Paradise'. Congratulations to you both and best wishes for your future together.

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Back to Upton Barn as a soloist.

I went back to the very lovely Upton Barn & Walled Garden today for another beautiful wedding. This time I was on my own as a solo violinist playing some new tunes. The bridal party entered to 'If I ain't got you' by Alicia Keys which works really well on electric violin. I played L.O.V.E. for the signing of the register and played another new tune 'Are you ready for Love' by Elton John for the exit which also went down really well. I played for the drinks reception and then swapped instruments and played some background piano tunes for the wedding breakfast. Lovely day. Thank you to the staff for being so helpful and welcoming.

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Busy Weekend with EVSQ.

I had a double header this weekend with the Exe Valley String Quartet.  Friday we played at a wedding at Upton Barn and Walled Gardens which is a regular venue for us over the past few years.  Lovely wedding with some Bridgerton music and James Bond 007 theme.  On Saturday we travelled down the A38 to the very beautiful Hareston Manor.  What a stunning place to get married!  This was a Canadian wedding so we played the groomsmen and bridesmaids in first (Ed Sheeran Perfect) followed by the bride (Take my Hand - Picture this). We then played a wide range of styles and classics for the drinks reception and photographs. It was a really lovely occasion.  What a job I have!

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Beautiful wedding at Huntsham Court (Exe Valley String Quartet)

Lovely bank holiday wedding at the very beautiful Huntsham Court Country House, Devon. Day out with the Exe Valley String Quartet. The weather stayed dry although a bit windy. We played 'Wildest Dreams' from Bridgerton for the entrance of the bridal party, Mama Mia and 'Habits' for the signing of the register and we played out the guests with 'Firework' by Katy Perry. We even got to play some rock songs for the brides father, Sweet Child of Mine and Back in Black by ACDC! First of two very different gigs this bank holiday weekend. Off to Plymouth the Rock Choir tomorrow.

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