August 31, 2014

Roger Kimball
Woodvale String Quartet

To Roger and fellow musicians,

When Ginny and I chose the Shalin Liu Performance Center to host our wedding held today, we knew we had to choose a group of musicians that would meet the lofty standards that such a beautiful place deserves.

And you made us look brilliant today in how you performed so beautifully for 5 hours. Musicians can often get lost in the background during the reception period in particular; Without being loud, yours did not. Large numbers of our guests commented to us favorably during the day about the music, a real tribute to your group.

We also threw some curves at you by asking you to help facilitate a "performance hour" where some of our guests could play an instrument of their choice, or sing, on-stage, The other guests loved that, as did the performers themselves, who were delighted to be able to say "I played on stage at the Shalin Liu." It really personalized the wedding, so much so that multiple guests said this was the best wedding they'd ever attended.

So, while you bill yourselves as a string quartet [and you are very much so], you are much more than that, with a flexibility of music range that helped please all types of musical tastes.

A measure of your impact is this: virtally none of our guests left before the end of the 5 hour ceremony/reception. The combination of a beautiful setting, great food, wonderful music, and interesting friends kept them there.

We thank you and your associate performers from the bottom of our hearts for your terrific contribution to our special wedding day.

Dan and Ginny

" Your group was absolutely amazing and one of my favorite parts of our wedding. The guests loved you all and when you played "Halo" when we walked into the cocktail hour, it made my night!!! I'm so glad the hostess took your card, I have been telling everyone how happy we were with your group! From the first time I emailed you up until the day we finally met, you were a joy to work with and made my big day everything I always dreamed it would be. For that I am eternally grateful!"
Elnaz B.

"...this year's Grand Wine Tasting...was a tremendous success and the quartet played an important part in it. Your selection of pieces was mainstream enough to capture everyone's imagination without demanding their attention. The visual presentation of the quartet also added to the total food and wine ambience that I was trying to create..."
Dan S., Carolina Wine Company

"As music director of a church, I have had the opportunity of working with the Woodvale String Quartet. They are amazing. I used them for my daughter's wedding in April and everyone thought they were great. The pieces were lovely and the arrangements were wonderful. I had the guests arrive a half hour early to enjoy the prelude music and it set the tone for a beautiful ceremony. I would recommend them!!!"
Susan F.

""We had the Quartet play in the Church for our Wedding. We cannot recommend them enough! Thay were superb! They got there before we did and were already playing. They learned songs for us from sheet music and even a you tube video and played them like they had known them for years! You will not be dissapointed hiring this special group of talented and dedicated musicians!""
Daniel C.

"The music was absolutely beautiful and exceeded all of our expectations. The mass was one of our favorite parts of the day, especially because of how amazing the music was. We had the wedding of our dreams and are so thankful that you were a part of it. Thank you so much for your unbelievable talent, professionalism, and courtesy in working with us."
Matt & Courtney L.

"The Woodvale String Quartet was everything we'd hoped you would be: cheerful, professional, with a fine-tuned sense of what sort of music to play at what points in the evening. And you sounded great! What talented musicians youa re! Several guests have told us how delightful the music was that event, and we couldn't agree more. "
Donna and Helen

"Thank you very much for making Matt and Lauren's wedding ceremony even more wonderful with your beautiful music. I knew when I heard you play 2 years ago that you would be the perfect quartet for our son's wedding ceremony and cocktail hour. And the musicians in the brides family are still talking about your great talent. It's easy to understand why you have been a successful quartet since 1986. Many thanks."
Arlene P.

"Once again, heartfelt thanks for another amazing accompaniment to a Daniel [family] wedding. Everything was flawless, from the elegant arrival music, to the exquisite and perfectly timed processionals, to the cool, funky Rocky's Theme closing. Over the past three years, Woodvale has played the musical score to the great milestones of our life--our three daughters' weddings and [Pastor] Jack's retirement gala--setting a gracious and artistic tone. We will take every opportunity to recommend you to others, and we hope that you enjoy playing together as much as we all enjoy, and are blessed by, listening."
My best, Kathy

"...we would like to extend our gracious thanks yet again to you and the quartet members for both the memorable and touching musical renditions during the ceremony and cocktail reception. We have received comments and compliments a plenty on the beautiful touch your quartet added to the day. Many thanks for blessing us with your talents on Lynlea's wedding day, and know that it was our pleasure to have found you."
Richard & Glenda L.

"...thank you so much for all the work you did arranging pieces for Rebecca's and Teresa's wedding ceremony, and of course the wonderful playing! The music really made the ceremony, and so many people told us how wonderful it was and how much it meant to them!!"
Paula Z.

"I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you once again for your fantastic performance at our wedding last month in Foxborough. We have received numerous compliments from our guests regarding the music at the ceremony and coctail hour. We have been telling everyone how professional you were to deal with, and how open and accomodating you were regarding our song selection. Also, the custom arrangement you wrote for the Hybrid piece was incredible. I definitely feel confident recommending you to anyone looking for a string group in the future. Thanks for helping make our wedding night perfect!"
Ben and Lauren

"Thank you for doing a splendid job last weekend for my parents' 50th anniversary party. The music was just beautiful and everyone loved it, especially the fact that they were able to talk and still enjoy the music."
Kathy, Ray & Irene P.

"Music is such an important part of any special occasion and the Quartet was a "class" act. Many guests commented how lovely the music was. The party was a memorable occasion...everyone had a wonderful time, and the Quartet made it beautiful."
Eleanor

"You are all so talented! We received many compliments on your beautiful performance. We would proudly recommend you to anyone in the future."
Linda & Michael

"We spent so much time picking out our music and it was so important to us, we're thrilled that you made all our planning a wonderful reality!"
Kim & Thomas L.

"We wanted to thank you for helping us in preparing for our ceremony...Every guest commented on how wonderful you were and how beautiful the music sounded. Thank you for making our cermony so memorable, you made it very special."
Jen & Rich M.

"Encore! Encore! Words can't begin to describe your performance during our ceremony! My family and friends are still talking! All of you have made a dream come true - thank you for that!...You were all that I expected and more! Again, many, many thanks!"
Kathy F.

"From all the compliments people have given us regarding our wedding, we have found that your playing during the cocktail and dinner hours was the highlight!"
Diana & Dan B.

"Every song was absolutely beautiful! I heard so many compliments from all the wedding guests. I don't think they had heard anything like it. I was so happy that you could play all of my selections too! Thank you for making my ceremony so special."
Noreen B.

"Thank you for the most joyous music I have ever heard at a wedding. My daughter and new son could not have had a more beautiful ceremony."
Bob S.

"People couldn't stop raving about them. Very nice to work with. Very accomodating with our daughter. Took care of details without bothering us. Very, very professional and talented.
Artist's appearance: excellent; Performance: excellent; Overall rating: excellent."
Pat M.

"Thank you so much for doing an amazing job on Friday - everyone raved about the string quartet!!! It was exactly what I imagined and I can't tell you how much I enjoyed hearing you play throughout the ceremony. I will definitely recommend you to anyone looking for a string quartet!"
Anya H.

"Our wedding day was the happiest and most pleasant day of our lives and you and your colleagues played a great role in making the day a perfect one for both of us. Thanks to you, beautiful music will always be part of our wedding day memories."
Peter & Linda A.

"Thank you so much for contributing beautiful music to our wedding! It was wonderful working with you and I look forward to passing your name along to friends and family!"
Laura & Alex

"We were so happy with the quartet for our wedding. It was even more beautiful than I ever could have imagined. A big thank you to you and the other members. We could not have been happier with our choice."
Heather & James T.

"THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! You were fabulous at my wedding ceremony :) I could not have asked for more! You and your group sounded so beautiful, please let them all know how grateful I am! It was such a pleasure working with you! I will definitely recommend you to my friends and family!!!! Take care!"
Andrea