You may have noticed that we don't have any recordings of us playing music on our website.
But, this may change over the summer! April has just purchased a recording microphone (which will arrive in the mail within the next couple of weeks).
Recording takes a lot of time and energy, but by the end of the summer we could have some snippets of our favorite pieces up on this blog for you to enjoy.
Wish us luck!
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Look at that lovely lawn.... missing a QUARTET!
Is something missing from this lovely lawn?
Prism thinks so.
This lawn needs..... a string quartet!
Now that spring has sprung, the flowers have begun blooming, and we can actually wear the occasional short-sleeved shirt outside, it is a great time to plan outdoor events.
Weddings, engagement parties, anniversary parties, themed dinners, birthdays... anything can be made more lovely with some live music.
This lawn needs..... a string quartet!
Now that spring has sprung, the flowers have begun blooming, and we can actually wear the occasional short-sleeved shirt outside, it is a great time to plan outdoor events.
Weddings, engagement parties, anniversary parties, themed dinners, birthdays... anything can be made more lovely with some live music.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
So serious....
You may remember that Prism played for Dave's son's winter wedding a couple of months ago.
Well, now we have official photographic evidence of it! Here is an official picture of our gig at the Cloverdale Church of God in December:
And, as a small note, we don't always dress in full black for weddings. :) They wanted Dave in a tuxedo, so our black ensemble (pun intended!) is what matched the best. But, let us know and we can dress in whatever way will fit your occasion!
Well, now we have official photographic evidence of it! Here is an official picture of our gig at the Cloverdale Church of God in December:
And, as a small note, we don't always dress in full black for weddings. :) They wanted Dave in a tuxedo, so our black ensemble (pun intended!) is what matched the best. But, let us know and we can dress in whatever way will fit your occasion!
Friday, January 24, 2014
Diane is at it again!
Diane is not only a mom and a full time nurse, but she also loves to take great pieces of music and re-write them for our string quartet! (This is called arranging.) At our rehearsal last night, we got to play 3 new pieces that Diane arranged for us. The pieces are: Kokomo by The Beach Boys; A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes by Mack David, Al Hoffman, and Jerry Livingston for the movie Cinderella; and Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber. We played through all three, and are excited to rehearse them more thoroughly so we can play them at any upcoming gigs.
We really need to finalize our Repertoire page and publish it so that you can see all of the great music we have to play, shouldn't we?
While we organize that, you should definitely listen to the Adagio for Strings. Samuel Barber wrote it in 1936, and ever since then it has been very popularly played at concerts and used in tv shows, movies, and now even video games. It is a haunting piece of music. Some of you might be familiar with it from the movie Deer Hunter, and others may recall hearing it over the radio during the broadcast of John F. Kennedy's death. It might not be a song you'd love to hear us play at your wedding, but it is a poignant, moving piece.
It's been almost 3 years since we put on an informal concert. But, the next time we do, Adagio for Strings will DEFINITELY be on our playlist.
We really need to finalize our Repertoire page and publish it so that you can see all of the great music we have to play, shouldn't we?
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It's been almost 3 years since we put on an informal concert. But, the next time we do, Adagio for Strings will DEFINITELY be on our playlist.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Official photos!
Here are some professional photos from the Roaring Twenties party! Click on them to see the enlarged images. The talented photographers at www.tanaphotography.com took these photos, so visit their website if you are in the market for skillful photography.
Here is Diane's arrangement of The Charleston...
This is a shot of the inside of the Thunder Mountain Line train. The guests enjoyed a catered dinner on their ride up to Banks.
Here is where the Thunder Mountain Line boarded in Horseshoe Bend. To the left is a train terminal where Prism played for guests as they arrived.
After the guests rode the train up to Banks and back, limos took them to our host's home. We continued our 1920s music on the porch there while the guests enjoyed drinks.
And here we are, in our flapper finery!
Here is Diane's arrangement of The Charleston...
April's shoes weren't "twenties-ish" enough, so this picture just includes Diane, Dave, and Nell. But, it's a great picture!
Here is where the Thunder Mountain Line boarded in Horseshoe Bend. To the left is a train terminal where Prism played for guests as they arrived.
And here we are, in our flapper finery!
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Blast from the past: Roaring '20s Party
Prism got nostalgic the other day and started looking for some photos of previous gigs. More are on the way, but we found a couple of photos from a gig we did 2 years ago. We got to play for a 1920s themed party which began in Horseshoe Bend, went up into the mountains via the Thunder Mountain Line, and then ended at the host's beautiful home in downtown Boise.
Our generous host paid for all of us to get outfitted in 1920s attire at The Costume Shop (which is unfortunately now out of business!). I know it's small, but Dave's wife snapped this picture of us before we left for the gig!
It was certainly a challenge - we played exclusively rags (like "The Entertainer" by Scott Joplin) and tangos to fit the 1920s theme, and we played for a total of almost 6 hours throughout the day! We set the speakeasy mood as guests arrived in Horseshoe Bend to board the Thunder Mountain line. Then, after the costumed guests mingled and enjoyed drinks, they boarded the train and took a leisurely ride up into the Idaho mountains.
We followed them up to their stop in Banks. There, we helped create the festive atmosphere while guests got off the train to enjoy drinks, a speech from our host, and a short skit by some fun local actors.
After that, we followed the guests to our host's home, where they enjoyed the party for several more hours. We sat at a great location on an elevated porch, and continued our 1920s marathon while guests mingled, sat by the pool, and enjoyed drinks and delicious catered hors d'oeuvres. We were scheduled to play until 10 pm, but the party just kept going so they asked us to stay for another hour.
We were all exhausted afterward, but it was a truly great afternoon and evening. Soon we will post some of the professional pictures taken at that wild party!
Our generous host paid for all of us to get outfitted in 1920s attire at The Costume Shop (which is unfortunately now out of business!). I know it's small, but Dave's wife snapped this picture of us before we left for the gig!
It was certainly a challenge - we played exclusively rags (like "The Entertainer" by Scott Joplin) and tangos to fit the 1920s theme, and we played for a total of almost 6 hours throughout the day! We set the speakeasy mood as guests arrived in Horseshoe Bend to board the Thunder Mountain line. Then, after the costumed guests mingled and enjoyed drinks, they boarded the train and took a leisurely ride up into the Idaho mountains.
We followed them up to their stop in Banks. There, we helped create the festive atmosphere while guests got off the train to enjoy drinks, a speech from our host, and a short skit by some fun local actors.
After that, we followed the guests to our host's home, where they enjoyed the party for several more hours. We sat at a great location on an elevated porch, and continued our 1920s marathon while guests mingled, sat by the pool, and enjoyed drinks and delicious catered hors d'oeuvres. We were scheduled to play until 10 pm, but the party just kept going so they asked us to stay for another hour.
We were all exhausted afterward, but it was a truly great afternoon and evening. Soon we will post some of the professional pictures taken at that wild party!
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Wedding at the Train Depot
Holy acoustics, Batman!
If you are looking for an event venue with amazing acoustics, the Boise Train Depot is it! This afternoon, Prism got to perform for a wedding in the Depot's great hall. With its tile floors, wooden seats, and curved, vaulted ceilings, the building is both a historic treasure of Boise and a string quartet's dream. We actually kept playing for a few minutes after the wedding guests had left because it was such a treat to hear the sounds of our instruments echoing throughout that huge room.
Normally for gigs we insist on 4 armless chairs and a square area of about 10 by 10 feet in order to play. We need the space for our chairs and music stands, plus we need plenty of physical space to play our instruments (since violins, violas and cellos are all bowed instruments, we need lots of bow room). But, at the Train Depot, the only place available to us was an L-shaped area along the side of the room. So, to save space we tried something new. Dave (our cellist) was seated while the other three of us stood while playing. All in all, it was a good solution to our problem, though April did have to lean to the side a few times to avoid poking wedding guests with her bow as they walked by. So remember, Prism always tries to be as flexible as possible to accomodate our client's needs!
For this wedding, we played our favorite cheerful tunes before the ceremony. Some of these include: Prelude to Romance by RJ Mitchell, Lo, How a Rose, arranged by Carole Neuen-Rabinowitz, If I Fell by The Beatles, Over the Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz, arranged by our violinist Diane, Sicilienne by Gabriel Faure, and Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley and Vera Matson.
The wedding party entered to Pie Jesu by Andrew Lloyd Weber (also arranged by Diane), and we found some sections that we could repeat so we could make the song as long as necessary to ensure all the bridal party all had time to get to the altar! The bride entered to Be Thou My Vision, an elegant Irish hymn, and the family candle-lighting ceremony was made even more poignant when we played The Prayer to accompany it. And, after the couple was pronounced man and wife, they took their first walk down the aisle as a married couple to the triumphant Baroque tune Trumpet Voluntary.
While the happy pair was congratulated by friends and family, we kept the background music bright and cheerful. We even got to perform a new arrangement of Diane's: A Wonderful World by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. Most of you will recognize that song as the version Louis Armstrong recorded in 1967. We can't ever compete with Louis' rich voice, but our quartet rendition still makes us feel pretty wonderful.
Happy New Year everyone, and Prism hopes everyone gets to enjoy great friends and great music in the upcoming year!
If you are looking for an event venue with amazing acoustics, the Boise Train Depot is it! This afternoon, Prism got to perform for a wedding in the Depot's great hall. With its tile floors, wooden seats, and curved, vaulted ceilings, the building is both a historic treasure of Boise and a string quartet's dream. We actually kept playing for a few minutes after the wedding guests had left because it was such a treat to hear the sounds of our instruments echoing throughout that huge room.
Normally for gigs we insist on 4 armless chairs and a square area of about 10 by 10 feet in order to play. We need the space for our chairs and music stands, plus we need plenty of physical space to play our instruments (since violins, violas and cellos are all bowed instruments, we need lots of bow room). But, at the Train Depot, the only place available to us was an L-shaped area along the side of the room. So, to save space we tried something new. Dave (our cellist) was seated while the other three of us stood while playing. All in all, it was a good solution to our problem, though April did have to lean to the side a few times to avoid poking wedding guests with her bow as they walked by. So remember, Prism always tries to be as flexible as possible to accomodate our client's needs!
For this wedding, we played our favorite cheerful tunes before the ceremony. Some of these include: Prelude to Romance by RJ Mitchell, Lo, How a Rose, arranged by Carole Neuen-Rabinowitz, If I Fell by The Beatles, Over the Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz, arranged by our violinist Diane, Sicilienne by Gabriel Faure, and Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley and Vera Matson.
The wedding party entered to Pie Jesu by Andrew Lloyd Weber (also arranged by Diane), and we found some sections that we could repeat so we could make the song as long as necessary to ensure all the bridal party all had time to get to the altar! The bride entered to Be Thou My Vision, an elegant Irish hymn, and the family candle-lighting ceremony was made even more poignant when we played The Prayer to accompany it. And, after the couple was pronounced man and wife, they took their first walk down the aisle as a married couple to the triumphant Baroque tune Trumpet Voluntary.
While the happy pair was congratulated by friends and family, we kept the background music bright and cheerful. We even got to perform a new arrangement of Diane's: A Wonderful World by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. Most of you will recognize that song as the version Louis Armstrong recorded in 1967. We can't ever compete with Louis' rich voice, but our quartet rendition still makes us feel pretty wonderful.
Happy New Year everyone, and Prism hopes everyone gets to enjoy great friends and great music in the upcoming year!
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