Cellist dropped out...ugh. DW music ruined!

biopoo

I'm so distraught right now. My cellist dropped out of my wedding because she is moving!! That particular group is the only one my venue deals with (not that there are very many to choose from on the island). This ruins everything because our song selections were mainly played on the cello!!! Now I'm stuck having to replace her with either another violin or a viola and our song selections don't all song good on those, especially the song I want to walk down the aisle too :-( Not to mention that the remaing members aren't familiar with that piece...only the cellist was.

SomethingBeautiful08

Relax... calm down... it will all work out and you've got plenty of time to figure it out.  It sounds like you are dealing with a string quartet, right?  Professional or amatur? (i.e. do they make a significant amount of money playing music or is this just a hobby they occasionally get paid for?) Either way, if they are any good at all, they've got plenty of time to learn & perfect whatever music you want to throw at them.  If you really want the cellist and they other people are up for working with someone new, there are options that you might not have thought of.  Is there an adult volenteer orcestra(sp?)  in the area?   If so, email the conductor and ask if there is a cellist that might be interested.  Have you looked at high schools or colleges with music programs? I know it might be scary to hire a student, but you've got plenty of time to make sure they know it and get up to speed. 

lehc723

I agree with the PP about checking in to a school. I work at a music school in NYC and know that we have people contacting us all the time about students performing, and they're always happy with it. Hopefully that can solve your problems. So relax-- it'll be okay!

biopoo

They are professional but it's a small island and there isn't really anyone else to choose from since my venue only works their list of people.

music11

As a cellist and musician myself, I can tell you that your group should be able to find a substitute cellist for your group.  Talk to them, and express that having the cello is important to you, can they find someone else in the area to replace them (even if it's just for your date).  It seems weird that your venue will only work with one group...is it a church?

In terms of learning new music, that should not be something that takes a huge amount of time (unless it's something super-complex).  What are you having them play?

biopoo

I'm sure they could learn it, however, the violin is too high for it to sound good. It is a Chinese song and the violin starts to screech on certain notes. I've already heard it and it's terrible. I sure wish I could afford to hire Yo-Yo Ma for the day...

biopoo

It's a resort...they don't bring others in for "liability reasons"...whatever that means... Maybe they have a contract with them...idk.