A Winter Wedding at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

I love Winter weddings. The stunning seasonal flowers like ivy, berries, heather and twisted willow make for gorgeous decorations; something about the chill in the air adds an extra spark to the atmosphere and the knowledge that Christmas is around the corner illuminates the proceedings with a festive feel. I actually think it's my favourite season for a wedding, and in December as opposed to July, you can get away with wearing the fabulous black dress...

The St Pancras Renaissance Hotel is a remarkable setting for a civil ceremony. The hotel's Grand Staircase provided a romantic backdrop, with it's gloriously gothic decor, gold leaf ceilings and hand stenciled wall designs. The thirty or so guests gathered on the landing to witness Sharon and James take their vows of faithfulness and love before strolling downstairs for a glass or three of champagne and the exquisitely made canapes.

Being an Irish lass, Sharon chose 'She Moved Through the Fair' for her processional music (click here to hear my recording of the piece).  The beauty of the Herbert Hughes arrangement of the piece was matched by the bride's grace and eloquence as she walked to meet her beau. He was totally smitten! It was wonderful to watch a couple so relaxed and so happy to be there, - for myself who sings at many weddings throughout the year, this one will stick in my mind for how James looked at Sharon from beginning to end... it was quite moving!

The couple chose Puccini's stirring and heart warming aria 'O Mio Babbino Caro' to sign the register to, followed by a soulful favourite of the groom's, 'If I Ain't Got You' by Alicia Keys. This helped to transition the atmosphere of the ceremony into a more relaxed state, positioning them for the waiting champagne! The couple walked, or more like skipped out to Stevie Wonder's 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours'.

Downstairs, as the guests mingled, Rob and I took our opportunity to interlace a festive tune or two - Mel Torme's 'Christmas Song' (Chestnuts roasting on an open fire....) and White Christmas - with a blend of soulful pop and jazz standards. I think we enjoyed it as much as they did! Here's what the bride had to say:
"Diana's voice is just incredible; Her singing filled our ceremony with emotion and created an unforgettable moment in our and all the guest's memory. Diana is a pleasure to work with and her advice on music choices was invaluable.  I would highly recommend Diana and her partner for any event and am confident that they would hit the right note for all occasions." 

Mmm, a soul and jazz wedding - the perfect kind!

It isn't often you meet someone who likes exactly the same music as you, is it? So when Charlotte, Chris and I met up on a sunny afternoon on Clapham Common to chat about music for their reception, I got VERY excited! "Charlotte!" I cried, "we must go out to a gig together! This is awesome!" (and two months later, we have done just that - Ledisi at Bush Hall).

The tone was set in the ceremony at HTB in London, where the couple chose worship songs that reflected their open and engaging personalities in their love for God. Glorious songs like 'Beautiful' by Phil Whickham, 'Happy Day' by Tim Hughes and 'Amazing Grace' preceded my favourite of all to sing as they walked down the aisle, 'Joyful Joyful' - not the hymn, or the gospel interpretation but Laura Hackett's version from IHOP. The couple ended up leading a conga around the church as we continued to play - it's one of those songs you just don't want to finish!

It was quite a treat to play with the lovely jazz guitarist in the reception Kristian Borring on some jazz standards like, 'What a difference a day makes' and 'Autumn Leaves' (Charlotte's favourite). We got a bit funky with Marvin Gaye's 'What's Going On' and Stevie Wonder's 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered' and I through a few of my own in there too: 'Sunrise', 'It ain't about the destination' and 'Thank You'.

Here's what Charlotte said about the day:
"Thank you so much for all your hard work - not only at the reception but at the church! You really made our day perfect! Your voice was beautiful and created the most stunning atmosphere! You've been blessed with a gift to change atmospheres. You took the ideas we had and created a melodic journey which took our guests from relaxing jazz, through to gospel and into funk, ready for boogieing on down! So many of our guests commented on how wonderful you were. Thank you again, Charlotte."

A Birthday Wedding For My Oldest, Grooviest Friend

Beth and Chris are definitely the most creative and original couple I've ever encountered! Chris is the perfect match for Beth, who I've known since we both played in Worcestershire county youth orchestra (the days when staring at cute trumpeters was far more interesting than following the conductor and all the good looking boys had code names to stay anonymous in our break time conversations). So even though their wedding landed on my 30th birthday, it was impossible to say no to singing at the wedding of my oldest, most genuine and thoughtful friend, and her hilarious fiance.

I knew it would be special from the start - Beth is a TV producer, writer and is paid to have good ideas! Her invitations arrived as postcards of the beautiful but tiny Norman church in Bockleton, Worcestershire, which very much felt in the middle of nowhere. It made me proud of my Worcestershire heritage to be in such beautiful country, though a little nervous if I'm honest, as I drove down lanes wide enough for one car only, flanked by farm hedges twice the height of my car! You can take the girl out of the city, but not the city out of the girl... (It also proved to be quite an evening as I drove past numerous closed petrol stations at 11pm with zero in the petrol tank...)

Their Order of Service was the most colourful and childlike I've ever seen, with extremely helpful hints of what was about to happen next. From 'Prepare for shaky voices and maybe tears' to 'Yippee! We will now be declare husband and wife. Wife and husband. Wusband.' 


Time for my bit. Though we bashed out what felt like a hundred ideas of songs for the signing of the register, including an acoustic version of Beyonce's Crazy In Love (!), they actually let me decide what I'd like to sing - very trusting, I know! I began with my own composition, a song called 'Sunrise' which is all about light coming from darkness, beauty from ashes, hope in impossible situations and the power that comes from love. The chorus lyrics are as follows:
It was a sunrise, first light, that night daylight came
Never thought I could fall in love this way
You look at me right in the eyes to me you say,
This is a new day, won't you walk my way?
Very appropriate I thought. Even if I do say so myself.

Following that, it was time for the congregation to get involved with some finger clicking and hand claps, much to the amusement of the bride, with Otis Reading's Stand By Me.

It isn't often I get to sing at a wedding in a red dress and red lipstick!

We adjourned to the reception venue across the lane, which just happened to be the family home, and entered a typical summer fete with a cake competition, tombola stall, splat the rat and coconut shy, topped off with a dog show - no, really - thus securing the title of most original wedding I've ever attended! And a terrific way to celebrate a birthday (albeit a 30th one... eek!).

Welcome to my blog!

At last, a space to describe and linger on some of the weddings I've had the pleasure to sing at. I hope they inspire you as you plan your wedding, or maybe it's your daughter's wedding, or your best friend! It certainly inspires me for mine.

Good luck!