Groove City Open Session

All photos by Ryan Salinas of Reve Weddings

Sunday, February 24th, Groove City had its first open session of 2008.  The band got together to rehearse new material they are adding to their repertoire this year, as well as special requests made by clients for whom they are performing in the next few months.  At 5:30pm, when the rehearsal ended, couples were invited to listen to the band to and decide if Groove City was the right fit for their reception.  

Six couples attended the session.  Groove City made a presentation, performing 10 song excerpts for the guests.  The first half of the presentation was in English, including oldies, disco, rock, country and motown.  The second half was a mix of Latin music, as many of our couples were looking to include those genres for their families and friends.  Salsa, merengue, cumbias, boleros and even reggaeton.

After the presentation was over, each of the couples got to spend some time talking to the band asking questions about their particular reception, and their music needs.  Four of the couples decided Groove City is the band for them!  We are so excited to have been invited to be a part of their wedding.

Our friend Ryan Salinas took these beautiful pictures.  Thanks, Ryan for coming to our party!  Ryan is the owner of Reve Weddings and one of the most talented wedding designers I know (and I must say, pretty good behind a camera!).  He has created many a fairy tale wedding.  Check out his designs online.

Zion Jazz on KRTU 91.7FM - Tuesday, Feb 19, 9:00pm

Zion Jazz/Allegretto Music violinist Jose Irizarry was invited Tuesday, Feb 19, to join the Jazz Protagonists on their weekly radio show: Protagonists Jazz Party.  This time it was a birthday party for late jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli.  The show aired Tuesday night at 9:00pm on KRTU 91.7 FM.

You can hear the show here in the KRTU audio archives.  Click on the Jazz Protagonists link.

Happy 100th Birthday, Stephane!!

The Beatles Rock!!

All photos by Goen South Photography

WOW!  I love this picture by Morris Goen.  This is the courtyard at the Hotel Valencia.  It is a truly striking setting, especially if you are having a more intimate wedding.  By the way, the fountain is gorgeous, and combines the elements of water and fire.  Just, wow!  This wedding was designed by Carey Millington at Goen South Wedding Consulting.  She did such a wonderful job.

"I want the quartet to play Beatles music."

Now, why is this wedding a highlight?  Well, Mackey Ward hired a String Quartet from Allegretto Music.  No sweat, just another day in the office, right?  A few weeks later she calls and says: "Okay, I want to have exclusively Beatles music played for my wedding."  And it had to be specifically a group of songs that she and her fiance, Will, absolutely loved.  Well, needless to say that the quartet-specific sheet music for these songs wasn't part of our trusty wedding music collection, or anybody else's, for that matter.  

GASP!?  Not really.  It's a good thing Mackey hired us.  We are the only music company in San Antonio that will special-write music for your celebration, even if it's not what people would consider "wedding music".  We've written everything from Luther Vandross to Foo Fighters.  

The String Quartet played In My Life for the wedding party entrance, and Mackey walked down the aisle to a classical piece by Rachmaninoff, the only non-Beatle selection.  Mackey and Will selected Some Things for their special music during the ceremony, and they marched out as husband and wife to All You Need Is Love.  Even the prelude music was hand-picked, special-written, Beatles songs that Will and Mackey love:  Don't Let Me Down, And I Love Her, Here There Everywhere, Girl, If I Fell and others.

The KENS 5 Connection - Vanessa Macias and Bob Ballou

All photos by Goen South Photography

Okay, I'll admit there is a kissing-in-front-of-the-Alamo theme going on here.  But no other city, short of Paris, has such a cool backdrop for a wedding picture, smack in the middle of where everything happens!

On September 8, 2007, Bob Ballou, KENS 5 Sportscaster married San Antonio beauty, Vanessa Macias.  Vanessa used to co-host the KENS 5 morning show: Great Day SA some time ago.  Their ceremony was held at the Basilica National Shrine of The Little Flower.  This church is gigantic and really beautiful.  It also has killer acoustics.  Bob and Vanessa had a String Trio from Allegretto Music perform for the ceremony.