Category Archives: Chicago Wedding Ceremony

Artistrings, Carol Sarlas Orchestra, Chicago Jazz, Chicago String Quartet, Chicago Wedding Band, Chicago Wedding Ceremony

Chicago Wedding Band Performed for Caitlin & Pete’s Westmoreland Country Club Celebration

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Playing at Westmoreland Country Club in June has become quite a tradition over here! Caitlin & Pete chose the Carol Sarlas Orchestra as their Chicago wedding band, and we had such an amazing time with them.

We started with their rehearsal dinner the night before at Sheridan Shores Yacht Club at Wilmette Harbor. The Artistrings pop string quartet created a conversation-friendly (yet upbeat!) mood and took requests of favorite pop and rock tunes all night long. It was easy to see that the next night was going to be something really special 🙂

Wedding day brought the hottest temperatures we’ve seen in some time. We enjoyed a ceremony inside the club, with the men of the wedding party dressed in traditional kilts. Artistrings again performed for the group, this time leaning more on the elegant classical side of things. The ladies in the wedding party made their entrance to the Flower Duet from Lakme, and Caitlin was the picture-perfect bride walking in to the Prime Minister’s Love Theme from Love Actually. During the ceremony, we called upon film music again, going with an interlude of Mothersbaugh’s Canon. The end of the ceremony brought the traditional sound of bagpipes to lead everyone out of the club and outside for cocktails in the garden.

Cocktail music was old school jazzy, upbeat, and lively – think Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Ella, Sammy Davis Jr., and Billie Holiday. Love it! Once we transitioned over to the tent for a served dinner, the weather started to cool off and guests enjoyed the warm summer evening’s breezy atmosphere. We switched gears a bit and focused more on Van Morrison, U2, Springsteen, and Bob Marley during dinner.

Here’s a quick example of upbeat jazz from early in the night:

When it was time to dance, everyone came back into the club, where we had flipped the space and the Carol Sarlas Orchestra was ready to party!

We created these next two videos exactly in order of how things went that night, please join us on the journey of Caitlin & Pete! You’ll even see a few seconds of their lovely first dance, Falling Slowly.

We had a ton of special requests, and had a blast with this crowd playing them all.

Thank you for the Wedding Wire love, Caitlin!!!

“Hands down one of the BEST wedding bands out there! Not only did the band sound incredible and keep everyone dancing all night – Sarlas Music was SUCH a joy to work with! So accommodating, flexible, responsive and talented! Chris and Carol made this whole process and enjoyable. I was super stressed about our ceremony music and they met with me for a second time and walked my through everything. We used the Carol Sarlas band for our wedding reception, the Artstrings quartet for the ceremony and the Artstrings pop quartet for our rehearsal – all were AMAZING!”

Artistrings, Carol Sarlas Orchestra, Chicago Jazz, Chicago Pop String Quartet, Chicago String Quartet, Chicago Wedding Band, Chicago Wedding Ceremony

Chicago Wedding Band and Pop String Quartet Performed for Josie & Robert’s Lake Geneva Wedding

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Josie & Robert each spent a lot of time in Lake Geneva growing up, so it made sense for them to choose Lake Geneva as a destination wedding location. They met on the lakefront in Chicago, when Robert’s dog Pierce ran up to Josie and essentially chose her. “Dad, she’s the one!” This is definitely our kind of love story 🙂

Their ceremony took place in the harborside gazebo at The Abbey Resort. The Artistrings pop quartet set the scene with the perfect combination of tunes, including Marry Me/Train, I’m Yours/Mraz, All of Me/Legend and Marry You/Bruno Mars. The officiant made her entrance to Somewhere Over the Rainbow/Izzy, while the wedding party entered to Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud. We all agreed that Josie chose the perfect song for her entrance with her uncle, which was Con Te Partiro. Breaking the glass at the end of their ceremony, kicked off Celebration/Kool and the Gang, and a celebration it was!

We continued over to cocktails on the patio, with a ton of great tunes from the string quartet. Sweet Child O’Mine, Smooth Criminal, Bohemian Rhapsody, Pumped Up Kicks, Fireflies, and Better Together, to name a few.

The celebration continued inside for dinner and dancing. The bride & groom chose three special songs that were so meaningful to everyone, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the room by the time our Chicago wedding band finished the special dances. Josie & Robert’s first dance was The Rest of Our Life by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Josie then danced with her godfather to Fathers & Daughters/Bolton, and then Robert danced with his mom to I Am Your Child/Barry Manilow. Lyrics are everything, and these songs have it all.

As things were getting started for the evening, we had some time to play some classic jazz tunes during dinner:

Dancing went all night long with this fun-loving crowd of friends and family! One of our favorite things was a Hora and Tarantella mashup, to merge the cultures of both families. So much joy!

Time for a late night groove tune:

We ended the night with two special requests – Die A Happy Man/Thomas Rhett (you’ll see the hero image at the top of this post from he last dance of the night), and….you guessed it….Celebration!

Josie & Robert, your love and energy is contagious, and we wish you all the very best that this world has to offer. Many hugs!!

“WOWWWWW!!! Listen, we are picky and we wanted the best, most amazing wedding band. Let me tell you that we found them. If you are willing to spend the money (and all great wedding bands cost big bucks) then don’t spend your money anywhere else. This group, led by Carol and Chris, are not only incredibly easy to work with in the planning stages, they are fun, caring, and efficient. Most importantly, they made our wedding into a live concert! The vocalists, the drummers, the guitar players, it was like being front and center for an epic concert. They nailed our slow songs, jammed out hard on the fun songs, hit every note, and even played an extra 30 minutes for us because NOBODY would get off the dance floor. We wanted a perfect wedding along the water’s edge in Lake Geneva, and our ceremony was truly outstanding and one to remember but the highlight of everything was these guys ROCKING OUT for 3.5 hours. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Robert and Josie E.”

Artistrings, Carol Sarlas Orchestra, Chicago String Quartet, Chicago Wedding Band, Chicago Wedding Ceremony

Chicago Wedding Band Performed for Whitney & Ian’s Celebration in the Modern Wing of the Art Institute

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Whitney & Ian chose the Modern Wing at the Art Institute for their beautiful celebration. Here’s the pristine room before guests arrived:

We began with ceremony in Griffin Court, with the Artistrings string quartet accompanying everyone down the aisle. The mothers and large wedding party appeared to the Hymne from L’Opera Sauvage/Vangelis, and Whitney chose the waltz-like Canon in F for her entrance. Ethereal music for all! Everything was expertly coordinated by Bambi of BCR Events, and we had such a lovely time working alongside her again!

Viva La Vida sent everyone out of Griffin Court and upstairs to Bluhm Terrace for cocktails, while our Chicago wedding band flipped the space for dinner & dancing. When everyone came back down for dinner, an east-coast style reception awaited them. The wedding party and guests of honor were introduced, and then we packed the dance floor for a few songs, ending with the bride & groom’s first dance, Die A Happy Man. It was the perfect way to get this party started!

Here’s some footage of late night dancing – fun all around!

Artistrings, Chicago Pop String Quartet, Chicago String Quartet, Chicago Wedding Band, Chicago Wedding Ceremony, Chris Sarlas Orchestra

Chicago Wedding Band Performed for Annie & Tommy’s Wedding at Marriott Lincolnshire Resort

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October 14, 2017
Marriott Lincolnshire Resort

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Our Chicago wedding band performed for Annie & Tommy’s wedding at Marriott Lincolnshire Resort on the rainiest day of the year, which can only mean amazing luck for this fun loving couple! Beginning with the Artistrings pop string quartet for ceremony & cocktails, (don’t forget the two bagpipers performing their ceremony recessional) and Chris’ band for a New York style reception with dancing between courses, this Chicago wedding celebration went nonstop all night long!

Our incredible vocal team (Jae, Dayna, Tim and Andy) along with acoustic guitar and cajon, dazzled everyone with an ‘Unplugged’ set during entree service. For their guests’ added enjoyment during dessert, Annie and Tommy invited a group of Irish dancers (led by their friend Kevin) to provide a fun, high energy ten minute show.

We love performing a great variety of styles on every party, and their first dance was a lesser known song from Marcus Mumford ‘When I Put My Hands On You.’ It was a wonderful choice with an extraordinary message!

Annie and Tommy chose dozens of fantastic party tunes, but one of the most fun requests came from Annie’s family. Her family’s MUST PLAY at every celebration is ‘Walk The Dinosaur’/Was Not Was. As you’ll see in the video, the line of dancers snaked through the whole tent!

What rain? I just saw a great Chicago wedding band at an incredible Chicago wedding 🙂

Thank you, Annie, for the Wedding Wire love!

My husband and I hired the Chris Sarlas Orchestra for our wedding and it was the best decision we made for our special day. They were absolutely amazing, kept the dance floor packed all night and our friends and family are still talking about it saying it was the best wedding they have been to and the best band they have seen. They work with you on all details and execute your songs and music perfectly. Hire them, you will be grateful you did. They will make your wedding 🙂

Artistrings, Carol Sarlas Orchestra, Chicago Corporate Entertainment, Chicago String Quartet, Chicago Wedding Band, Chicago Wedding Ceremony

Chicago Wedding Band Performed for Alison & Karl’s Wedding at Marriott Lincolnshire Resort

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Marriott Lincolnshire Resort
December 30, 2017

Our Chicago wedding band performed for Alison & Karl’s Wedding at Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, and as you will see from the video clips, it was an amazing celebration! Customizing a package was key for this super sweet couple. Alison’s grandfather was a cellist in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and she had always dreamed of having her wedding party walk down the aisle to the Adagio from Beethoven’s Op. 132 string quartet. The Artistrings string quartet timed this perfectly for their processional, along with a stately arrangement of the Promenade from Pictures at an Exhibition for Alison’s grand entrance.

Dancing to the Carol Sarlas Orchestra followed in the Grand Marquis tent. Kudos to the Marriott, as we were toasty warm on the coldest day of the year!