JAM Duo are delighted to provide live cello and piano wedding music at The Priests House at Barden Tower, near Skipton in North Yorkshire. Having now played for several weddings here over the past few years, it is a venue we know well and one to which we are always very happy to return.
Set in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales countryside close to Bolton Abbey, The Priests House has a character quite unlike many modern wedding venues. Weddings centre around the historic Chapel, The Priests House itself and the surrounding grounds at Barden Tower, creating a wonderfully intimate setting for a wedding day. The Chapel can be used for both the ceremony and larger wedding breakfasts, while the Oak Room provides an alternative for smaller celebrations. The venue offers exclusive use for weddings, allowing the different parts of the day to flow naturally between the indoor rooms and outside spaces.
For us as wedding musicians, it is also a venue which works particularly well for live music. The Chapel has plenty of atmosphere of its own, but cello and piano add another dimension without overwhelming the space. We have provided music here for ceremonies, wedding breakfasts and other parts of the wedding day, using both the venue piano and our own equipment depending on the couple’s plans.
Live Music for a Wedding Ceremony at The Priests House
The Chapel at The Priests House is especially suited to a live wedding ceremony. Its stone walls, historic character and traditional feel lend themselves beautifully to acoustic instruments and classical wedding music, although contemporary songs can work equally well.
One of the great advantages for JAM Duo is that there is a piano already situated in the Chapel. Where appropriate, Jules can use the venue’s grand piano while Anne-Marie plays acoustic cello. This gives couples the option of having a completely acoustic cello and piano sound for their ceremony and looks entirely at home within the surroundings.
The Chapel itself was extensively restored to create the wedding and function space used today and includes a piano, dance floor and stage area.
As with every JAM Duo wedding, the ceremony music can be tailored completely to the couple. At The Priests House we have played everything from very traditional classical wedding repertoire through to modern songs arranged for cello and piano.
A recent wedding here was a particularly good example. The ceremony included Handel’s Alla Hornpipe, the Trumpet Voluntary, music from Handel’s Royal Fireworks, Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, Wagner’s Bridal Chorus and Mendelssohn’s Wedding March. Later in the day, the music moved into Coldplay, Muse, Fleetwood Mac, Oasis, The Verve, Lewis Capaldi and Bruno Mars.
That contrast is one of the things we particularly enjoy about providing music throughout a wedding day.
Using the Grand Piano at The Priests House
As a professional pianist and church organist, Jules always enjoys the opportunity to use a real piano where a venue has a suitable instrument available.
The piano in the Chapel means that couples can choose a very traditional setup for their ceremony, with piano and acoustic cello positioned naturally within the room. This can be especially effective where the ceremony music itself is classical or traditional.
There is something particularly appropriate about hearing pieces by Handel, Bach, Wagner or Mendelssohn played on a real piano with acoustic cello in a historic Chapel. Equally, arrangements of contemporary songs can sound beautiful in exactly the same setting.
Because everything we perform is played completely live, we can also adapt the length of entrance and exit music to what is actually happening during the ceremony. There is no backing track which has to finish at a predetermined moment.
This is particularly useful for bridal entrances where timing can inevitably vary, and for the recessional where guests may take longer than expected to leave the room.
Drinks Reception Music at The Priests House
JAM Duo can also provide live cello and piano music for the drinks reception at The Priests House, whether this takes place outside in the grounds or indoors depending on the weather and the plans for the day.
For an outdoor drinks reception, our setup can be positioned to create a relaxed musical backdrop while guests enjoy drinks, canapés and photographs. The music at this point in the day is usually lighter and more contemporary, with a mixture of well-known songs, film music and modern wedding favourites. Because we use professional amplification where appropriate, the cello and piano can remain clear and present without becoming intrusive.
If the weather means the drinks reception needs to move indoors, we can adapt the setup accordingly. This flexibility is particularly useful at a venue such as The Priests House, where different parts of the wedding day can move between the Chapel, Oak Room and outside spaces. We can adjust both the instruments and amplification to suit the location, whether using acoustic cello for a more intimate atmosphere or the Yamaha SVC300 electric cello with the Nord Stage piano for a slightly more contemporary sound.
Drinks receptions are often one of the most relaxed parts of a wedding day, and live cello and piano work especially well here. Rather than guests hearing a fixed playlist, the music remains responsive to the atmosphere in the room or outside space, creating something elegant and personal while everyone enjoys the time between the ceremony and wedding breakfast.
Wedding Breakfast Music at The Priests House
Once the ceremony has finished, the Chapel can be transformed for the wedding breakfast. For larger celebrations this means the same atmospheric room can take on an entirely different character later in the afternoon.
For wedding breakfast music we will often use our own setup rather than the venue piano. Jules plays the Nord Stage piano, which can be housed inside our gloss black grand piano shell, while Anne-Marie can change from the acoustic cello to her Yamaha SVC300 electric cello.
The result is visually quite different from the traditional ceremony setup while still retaining the elegance of cello and piano.
At one of our recent weddings at The Priests House, the piano shell and electric cello were positioned on the dance-floor area between the dining tables. This put the musicians near the centre of the room rather than hidden away in a corner and worked particularly well for the wedding breakfast.
The music during a meal should never prevent people from talking. We therefore keep the volume at an appropriate level and create a relaxed musical backdrop while guests eat, chat and enjoy the afternoon.
The repertoire can also become much broader at this point in the day. Couples frequently choose contemporary music, film themes, songs from musicals, indie music, classic pop and more recent chart songs alongside some of the better-known romantic wedding favourites.
Acoustic Cello or Electric Cello?
One advantage of booking JAM Duo is that we can choose the instruments which best suit each part of the wedding.
For an intimate ceremony in the Chapel, acoustic cello with the venue piano can be ideal. It creates a natural sound and suits the historical surroundings particularly well.
For a wedding breakfast or drinks reception, the Yamaha SVC300 electric cello combined with the Nord Stage piano gives us greater flexibility. Both instruments can be amplified through our professional sound system where required, allowing the music to remain clear even when a room contains more conversation.
It also means there is no need for us to compromise by using recorded accompaniment.
JAM Duo is always just the same two musicians: Anne-Marie on cello and Jules on piano. We do not use deputies, additional musicians or backing tracks. Every note you hear during your wedding is played live.
Why JAM Duo Love Playing at The Priests House
Having worked at The Priests House several times, we have come to know the venue rather than simply arriving there for the first time on each occasion. That familiarity is useful when planning where to position instruments, how to move between different parts of the day and how much equipment is actually necessary.
It is also simply a very pleasant venue at which to work.
We particularly enjoy working with Conor and the team at The Priests House. Conor has always been extremely welcoming and kind to us as suppliers, and that makes a genuine difference. A wedding works best when the venue, musicians and other suppliers can quietly work together in the background, leaving the couple and their guests simply to enjoy the day.
Our experiences at The Priests House have always been positive in that respect. We are made to feel welcome, practical arrangements are straightforward, and there is a clear understanding of how live music can fit into the day.
That is one of the reasons we are always pleased when another Priests House wedding appears in our diary.
Planning Your Wedding Music at The Priests House
Every wedding is different, so there is no fixed programme of music you need to follow simply because you are getting married at The Priests House.
You might choose a completely traditional ceremony with classical entrance music and Mendelssohn for your exit. Alternatively, your ceremony could consist almost entirely of modern songs which mean something particular to you. Many couples choose something between the two.
If we are also providing music later in the day, the style can change completely once the ceremony is over. A traditional ceremony can easily be followed by Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Oasis, Taylor Swift, Elton John, The Verve, Fleetwood Mac, film music or whatever else reflects your taste.
Because we already know the venue, we can also advise on the most appropriate instrument setup for the different parts of your wedding.
The Priests House Wedding Venue – Key Information
- Venue: The Priests House, Barden Tower, near Bolton Abbey, Skipton, North Yorkshire, BD23 6AS
- Main ceremony space: The Chapel
- Wedding breakfast: The Chapel for larger weddings, with the Oak Room available for smaller celebrations
- Venue piano: Yes – there is a piano in the Chapel
- Live music: Well suited to acoustic cello and piano as well as amplified electric cello and piano
- JAM Duo options: Ceremony music, drinks reception music and wedding breakfast music can all be incorporated depending on the booking
- Instruments: Acoustic cello, Yamaha SVC300 electric cello, Nord Stage piano and our gloss black grand piano shell
- JAM Duo: Always Anne-Marie on cello and Jules on piano, with no backing tracks and no deputy musicians
Cello and Piano Wedding Music in Skipton and North Yorkshire
If you are planning a wedding at The Priests House, Skipton, and are considering live music for your ceremony, drinks reception or wedding breakfast, JAM Duo can provide a completely bespoke programme of cello and piano music for your day.
Having performed at The Priests House on a number of occasions, we already understand how the venue works and how live music can fit into the different stages of a wedding there.
From an acoustic cello and grand piano playing Handel and Mendelssohn in the Chapel to our electric cello and black grand piano setup playing contemporary music during the wedding breakfast, the music can evolve with the wedding itself.
And, as always with JAM Duo, every note is played live.