Jennifer Keller - Harpist

Ok, if you read my blog regularly, you know that I am a big guitar fan. No secret there.

But given the choice of a guitar, a string quartet, or any other instrument(s) for a wedding ceremony, cocktail hour or reception... my number one choice would be... a HARP!

That's right. A Harp! Even before photographing weddings 17 years ago, I always thought that the harp was the most elegant of instruments. The sound from a harp is so pure and soothing that it makes perfect sense to have this wonderful instrument at weddings.

But unfortunately, very few people hire harpists for weddings! I just don't understand why! Perhaps people don't think about it or they just don't know where to turn.

Well, look no more! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND booking Jennifer Keller for the job! She plays so well and she's got the COOLEST HARP around! It can be played acoustically or plugged-in and amplified! That's so cool!

I've got a story that I must tell you about Jennifer. About ten years ago, I went to the Arlington Heights Guitar Center to look at the latest musical instruments. Being a guitar player since I was ten years old, I love going to music stores! Well, I never forgot about the time I went to Guitar Center and saw this harpist who brought in her harp to try out sound systems! Unbelievable! In all the years I had been going to various music stores, I had NEVER seen anyone bring in a harp! I mean, after all, it's GUITAR Center... not HARP Center! Well, everyone around had to check this out for themselves. In one area of the store, we had the Heavy Metal guitarists who were busy strumming away on the electric guitars making all sorts of noises. Then in another room, there were the drummers all testing out the latest drums. But in the sound reinforcement room, there was Jennifer testing out sound systems! It was the funniest sight to see these long-haired rock 'n rollers standing around checking out the harp player!

I never forgot that in all these years. Then just yesterday at my 7-7-07 wedding, guess who was hired to play the harp? Yes... it was Jennifer! Until yesterday, I did not know Jennifer because we had never been introduced. But she looked so familiar. So I went up to her before the wedding and introduced myself and I asked her if she had played at one of my weddings before, but she said she had not. During the ceremony, I kept thinking to myself, "Where have I seen this lady before?"

It wasn't until the cocktail hour when I saw her playing the harp through a sound system that it dawned on me that she could have been the lady who brought in her harp to Guitar Center many years ago. So I asked her if she had purchased her sound system at Guitar Center and she told me that it was about ten years ago that she did. It was her!

I got such a kick out of it that I had to tell the bride and groom. After I got home from the wedding and was uploading my images to my computer, I told my daughter about Jennifer too. She remembered the story I told her years ago of the "Guitar Center Harpist" and she was happy that I had finally met the lady from the story!

Well, I want to give Jennifer my highest recommendation! She plays wonderfully and I don't know of any other harpists out there who can perform at your wedding and also at your cocktail hour or reception too! Without a sound system, it's very difficult to hear the harp over all the people milling around at a cocktail hour. But with Jennifer's great sound system (she bought a good one), you can hear her easily.

Please book Jennifer for your wedding! She's very reasonably priced for her services and she's a pro. If you have not yet decided on an instrumentalist for your ceremony or for your cocktail hour or reception, consider hiring Jennifer. I don't give many vendors this kind of recommendation, but I will for her. She left a very favorable impression on me ten years ago which I had never forgotten. If you want your guests to remember your wedding... hire her! They will be talking about it for years too! Here's her website: http://www.elegantharp.com/