Late last night a friend of mine asked if I would play the piano for her wedding. Normally this would be no problem, so long as I don't have anything else booked for that night. However, their wedding is this Friday--she asked me on Monday night as I was getting ready for bed. I am not the only one who has a problem with this...unless you are dealing with someone who frequently (I'm talking at least once every 6 months) plays weddings/other events, 4 days is NEVER enough notice.
I'm not surprised they asked me to play. I've been very close friends with both the bride and groom for 15 years, and they know I love playing the piano. In an effort to cut the cost of the wedding, I'm sure they would want to go with someone they know. I wasn't anticipating it, though. I've had several conversations with them about their wedding plans, and this never came up. I know they didn't just "space it" because I know their parents well enough to know they would have brought it up multiple times. In recent years I've noticed both the bride and the groom to be more and more frivolous, especially once they got engaged. They just didn't care enough to ask me sooner.
Well, this is an extremely busy week for me. I have a tap routine to finish learning so that I don't embarrass myself on stage this weekend (get tickets here). I have a piano solo I'm playing in church on Sunday (I've been planning for it and practicing for a month, but still have lots more practice to do before I'm prepared--and it's even a song I had mastered 3 years ago for another performance). I'm working my 40 hours Mon-Thur so that I can take Friday off for the wedding. I have improv and choir rehearsals this week. All of which my soon-to-be-wed friends are aware of. Why, then, would they ask me, unless they were really really desperate? That's why I agreed to play. I still have my collection of wedding music from my brother's wedding, 3 1/2 years ago. I haven't practiced since then, and I can't guarantee I'll get any practice before Friday. But since I'm their friend, and their frivolity has made them desperate, I'll do this favor for them.
And if it turns out I'm too rusty, I won't feel bad. It's not my fault I had no time to prepare.
3 comments:
And the piano number for church was just beautiful - what an amazingly difficult piece!
What song did you play, out of curiosity? I'm looking for a new number to learn to play at our church as I haven't played in awhile.
It's a piano medley by Lenora Ford Brown that had Joseph Smith's First Prayer, Praise to the Man, and A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief. It's called A Tribute to a Prophet and is my favorite church solo.
Post a Comment