The Capriccio Ensemble

From Across the Ocean!

2011-02-06T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here is the REVIEW that we recently received in early February of 2011 from Hong Kong from Kathleen and Chris Pagan. The review is about the ensemble we provided for their wedding mass and cocktail hour to follow from early 2009:

"Absolutely wonderful! Having the right music was so very important to us at our wedding and The Capriccio Ensemble gave us exactly what we wanted. Coordinating the day of music couldn't have been easier. We chose a String Quartet, Trumpeter, Organist and Soprano. All were fantastic. The team was professional and flexible...and we did it all under serious time pressure. We highly recommend them.

- Kathleen and Chris Pagan, 20 December 2008, NYC
Wedding at The Church of the Holy Innocents & reception at The Haier Building "

We are so happy to hear from Kathleen and Chris!
I worked very closely with Chris in particular towards the correct musical presentation for their Wedding Mass. The church had found them an organist who was a student however Chris was very concerned when this organist (and she was extremely cheap to book)
told him that she did not have the proper sheet music for the religious/responsorial music which must be performed during the mass. She went even further to tell Chris, the Groom, that if he or someone did not get her this music (which all professional organists already have and have performed 100's of times!) she could not be held accountable for the mistakes she would no doubt make.

I received a phone call from Chris 2 nights before his wedding asking me to find him an organist to perform at his wedding.
As I am a full time professional musician working with members of Local 802 AF of M, NYC and in having worked with the best of the best organist in NYC, Dr. Jennifer Pascual, the Director of Music of the Cathedral of St. Patrick NYC I set out to find the best possible organist with very very short notice.
I received a phone call the next AM at 8:30 AM from Dr. Jennifer Pascual stating that she was available, and would like to help out in light of the situation which I had been clear about when I e mailed her as well as other organists.

Moral of the Story: Sometimes one really and truly does "get what you pay for" and I would not advise anyone to skimp on the music that is integral to a wedding mass and to your special day. If you are a wedding coordinator reading this it is probably best NOT to contact us if all that matters to you is pandering to your client and finding her the cheapest possible strings because that is not what Capriccio Ensemble is about.
We are all about quality with as reasonable a cost to our highly valued clients as is possible for our great sound, talent and professionalism. We cannot be the cheapest ones to be found, and therefore if that is your goal....finding the rock bottom absolute cheapest violinist or string ensemble we are more than likely not going to fill this kind of need.

Here is the REVIEW that Kathleen and Chris wrote from their wedding from early 2009:

"Absolutely wonderful! Having the right music was so very important to us at our wedding and The Capriccio Ensemble gave us exactly what we wanted. Coordinating the day of music couldn't have been easier. We chose a String Quartet, Trumpeter, Organist and Soprano. All were fantastic. The team was professional and flexible...and we did it all under serious time pressure. We highly recommend them.

- Kathleen and Chris Pagan, 20 December 2008, NYC
Wedding at The Church of the Holy Innocents & reception at The Haier Building "

Happy New Year to all!

2011-01-01T23:38:00.000-08:00

The image above is a mini snow lady I made on a walk with my husband at
Rye Playland, Rye Town Park and through the town of Rye NY on New Years Day!
I felt so sad to leave her all alone on top of a wall that frames the park.

With all the snow we have had recently it was so much fun to go out, walk in it, throw snowballs at each other and watch the children tobagganing and sledding!

With all the hustle, bustle, parties, family social get togethers and so much that goes on during the holidays I hope you had a season of great joy as well
as peace.

Today, 1/2/11 We are performing at our first wedding ceremony of the season. The bride and groom are both medical students studying to become doctors in Mexico.
The bride hails from Long Island and the Groom and his family are from Puerto Rico.

Christmas Eve found a Duo of Violin and Flute at St. Johns on the Hill, Epsicopal Church in Tuckahoe NY on Underhill Avenue. It was a beautiful service and Mother Susannah, who is also fighting cancer, gave a both beautiful and uplifting sermon. We also enjoyed the music of the choir, Ann Patton the church organist and choir director and the opportunity to perform in this lovely old church which is about 150 years old. The accoustics favor our instruments and the entire evening was one I will always cherish.

On December 17th we provided a Quartet of Violin, Guitar, Viola and Cello at the American Express annual holiday day party over at 2 American Express Tower in Manhattan. Parents bring in their young children for many fesitivities which include meeting Santa, seeing Elmo and other characters from Sesame Street walking all about, having their faces and hands painted for the holidays, treats, and our
music which consists of seasonal classical music, Christmas Carols, Hannukah songs, and popular Christmas and holiday favorites. We had a great time playing for everyone there!

This month we are performing at 2 very big and much talked about promotional events...details soon!

Once again Happy New Year from all of us...wishing you a great year filled with joy, happiness and peace :)

Happy New Year to all!

2011-01-01T23:23:00.001-08:00

2010-10-18T23:09:00.001-07:00

Autumn 2010, Updates, Showcases, Concerts!

2010-10-18T22:42:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the beautiful fall foliage?
It's been great to see all the great colors of fall!

Our performances have included:
10/6/10: At the invitation of Tammy DeVito, Catering Manager we participated
in The Fall Bridal Show held at the Pelham Split Rock Golf Club on Shore Rd, in the Bronx.
Our String Trio had a wonderful time there performing classical music as well as songs by the Beatles, U2, and Led Zeppelin!
We met several lovely brides and grooms including Yvette and Steven whom we will
perform for on 9/25/11 at Villa Barone Manor in the Bronx and
Marissa whom we will perform for on 10/09/11 at the Glen Island Harbour Club.
Thank you to all who stopped by to speak to us and for all the great feedback!

10/9/10, the Wedding Ceremony and Cocktail Hour of Marlana and Justin (a member of the military) held at Tarrytown House Estate. A beautiful day for a beautiful couple. The weather held up perfectly with temperatures in the 70's and not a cloud in the sky!
Our String Quartet performed "Danza Pastorale" for the entrance of Family, the Groom and Groomsmen, followed by "November Rain" by Guns n Roses for the entrance of the Bridesmaids, and "Canon in D" for Marlana, escorted by her Father.
We mixed it at the end with the opening strains of "Trumpet Voluntary" (Clarke) flowing right into "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve.
At the cocktail hour we performed vintage songs from the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's. Many guests complimented the quartet and were applauding after hearing songs they knew and loved!

10/10/10, the Wedding Ceremony of Jennifer and Matt held at Le Chambord in Hopewell Junction NY. Again a picture perfect day with temperatures holding well in the mid to uppser 60's.
I performed as a Violin Soloist for their wedding ceremony. The bride was stunning in a cream colored gown. The venue was modeled after the mansion used in the vintage fil, "Gone with With the Wind" and was really charming.
the staff was very nice, kind and helpful.
I performed "Canon in D" by Pachelbel for the bridal party and "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring" for Jennifer's entrance.
For the Recessional music, I performed my own arrangement of
"Ode to Joy" by Beethoven flowing into "All You Need is Love" and concluded with a few more up beat Beatles songs including "I Want Hold Your Hand" and "When I'm 64".
As I was travelling with my husband that day we concluded the day with a game of billiards and a fabulous dinner in Chappaqua at an Italian restaurant with both know and love.

On 10/18/10 our Duet of Violin and Cello performed at an "Everything Bridal" show held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in White Plains. It was a small and intimate show and very pleasant to participate in.
My recommendation here is that if you are on a budget, the Duet of Violin and Cello works wonderfully as it gives you the melody as warmly performed by a violinist with the bass notes of accompaniment by the cello. The sound is not as full perhaps as a string quartet (4 musicians) or string trio however it is a beautiful as well as very blending sound.

Future performances:
10/23/10 at the Bedford Post Inn, Bedford, NY: String Trio for the Ceremony
of Victoria and Jae. Their wedding music will be
"Here Comes the Sun" by the Beatles and "Come as You Are" by Nirvana
with the Recessional "Crazy" by Knarles Barkley
10/23/10 at the Riviera of Massapequa: Trio of Violin, Flute, Cello
performs at a Ceremony for "High Society Rhythm". All classical selections
will be performed including the traditional "Here Comes the Bride"/"Bridal Chorus" by Wagner, for the Bride's entrance.

10/26/10 at the Stuart Thomas Manor, Bridal showcase to be performed by a
heavenly duo of Harp and Violin. We will begin performing at 5:45 PM.
Address of Stuart Thomas Manor:
2143 Boundary Avenue, Farmingdale NY

11/5/10, Duet of Violin and Cello at the Westbury Manor for the Ceremony
of Jocelyn and Derek.
Their Processional for the Bridal Party will be "November Rain" by Guns n Roses
and prelude requests include "Never Tear us Apart" by the INXS

11/6/10 Duet of Violin and Harp will perform at the Wedding Cocktail Hour
of Dana and Dave at the beautiful and sophisticated Glen Island Harbour
Club of New Rochelle

11/13/10 a Duet of Violin and Harp shall perform at the wedding ceremony of Lisa and Dave at a church in Scarsdale, NY in the afternoon.

Several events occur and then our String Quartet is to perform
at the Annual "Concerts at Advent" which are held
at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers NY.
There are 2 concerts:
1. 12/4/10 at 7:30 PM
2. 12/5/10 at 3:00 PM
Our String Quartet performs with Choir, Vocal Soloists, Trumpets, Tympani,
and Organ. The Concerts are conducted by Dr. Jennifer Pascual, Director of Music of the Cathedral of St. Patrick and produced by the NY City Roman Catholic Church/
Archdiocese.
Tickets can be purchased in advance by contacting St. Joseph's Seminary;
201 Seminary Avenue, Yonkers NY 10701.

Thank you for reading our latest news!

Special Events in September!

2010-09-25T22:05:00.001-07:00

Summer has ended however the warm days of Indian summer are here and it's been really beautiful!...hope you are enjoying the beautiful time as the season changes to autumn.

The month of September was a very busy month for Capriccio.

We started the month with a wedding held at Flowerfield in St. James NY.
Although it was a rainy day, there was n'er a cloud in the sky for our bride and groom who were such nice people and very much in love!
Their beautiful ceremony which included their own vows to each other was so romantic and hearfelt. Everyone is our string quartet was both touched and charmed by
our wonderul couple on 9/3/10: CAREY AND BRYAN.

On 9/25/10 I found this wonderful review on www.liweddings.com on "the Bride's Review":
STRING QUARTET (for hospitality and ceremony) - CAPPRICCIO ENSEMBLE
A+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Second best vendor! I cannot say enough great things about our string quartet. I worked with Natalie and she was a pleasure to work with and made our ceremony a dream come true. I wanted all contemporary music and so I chose In My Life for the parents, officiant, groom and best man to walk down to. The BP walked down to Only Time by Enya and I walked down to All I Want is You by U2. The rendition of my song gave me the goose bumps as I was walking, it was SO BEAUTIFUL. Fun Fact: They are the same quartet that played at Jerry Seinfeld’s wedding.

We are all so honored to have been a part of their most special day!

On September 24th, we provided a Duet of Cello and Violin at a Wedding Mass held at Our Lady of Hope Church, Middle Vllage, NY. The bride, Marisa, was resplendant in a gorgeous romantic gown. She looked so beautiful. The couple was very happy and everyhing worked out perfectly at their wedding mass. Highlights for us were that Eugene (cellist) and I performed beautiful ceremony interludes for the Offeratory ("The Prayer" by David Foster), for Communion ("Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring" by JS Bach) and a mix of classical to pop for their Recessional ("Allegro" from Autumn of the Four Seasons by Vivaldi flowing into "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve/Rolling Stones.
Also memorable was the very nice organist and music director of the church who was so helpful and just a nice guy all around, Larry Ables. The soprano had a wonderful voice as well although we did not have much occasion to speak with her she did a great job.

Another stand out ceremony was Katlyn's lovely ceremony held at the beautiful Hyatt Regency in Old Greenwich CT on 9/18/10. Our A-team Duet of Cello and Violin which is Eugene with me (Natalie) performed "All I Ask of You" for the Seating of family and Wedding Attendants Processional and then performed "She's Got a Way" by Billy Joel for the Bride's entrance. We learned later as we were leaving that this special selection ("She's Got a Way") was to be a surprise to the groom who did not know that the bride would be walking in to their favorite song!

On 9/5/10 we performed a ceremony at the beautiful Inn of New Hyde Park in New Hyde Park, NY. The bride was a tall statuesque beauty. She walked out to "Canon in D" and had a great weather day with the sun shining at about 76 degrees..picture perfect!

On 9/4/10 2 ceremonies were performed. One was an Indian Christian ceremony which was held inside of a Greek Orthodox Church in New Rochelle. It was quite an experience for our Trio. We had never participated/performed at an Indian Christian ceremony and in following the wedding program and the many rituals and prayers we were intrigued and everything as it occurred.
THe bride's Processional, at her request was "Hallelujah" by the band Paramore. I had arranged a part specially for our violist as the groom had sent 2 parts only. We made it work to our best and fullest ability. Please do not take this badly if you are bride reading this however as an accomplished and very experienced classically trained musician who also enjoys performing many different styles of music I found this particular choice (their choice not ours) to be a tad off base for the momentous occasion and also musically it was very repetitive and monotonous.Sorry, however I do not recommend that anyone use this piece of music as a Processional!
Even though it was very well played, it really and truly simply is just not appropriate. We do our best to perform any selection the client would like however sometimes and on rare occasions actually there is a piece of music, such as this one, which (JMHO..just my honest opinion) does not work well!

On Saturday evening 9/25/10 a Trio of Violin, Flute and Cello performed outdoors behind Battery Gardens which is located nest to the Staten Island ferry in lower Manhattan. During the ceremony a boat came by displaying fountains of water it was spewing in colors. It made a cute and pretty backdrop to their ceremony. The bride and groom, Aimee and David made a handsome couple. They are both super attractive and looked very happy as they exited to their chosen Recessional music which was "Viva la Veda" by Cold Play.

More next month.
Thank you for reading our latest news!

Natalie

Mid summer Events and Weddings!

2010-08-10T00:11:00.000-07:00

We have had a great couple of weeks.
Highlights:
On 7/24/10, Laura and Pater at Calvary Lutheran Church in East Meadow NY.
What a gorgeous bride with the most stunning bouquet ever.
The church was so sweet and filled with all of their family and guests.
Our String Quartet performed as guests entered for seating, and for the Processional of Family and Bridesmaids and "Canon in D" for Laura, our beautiful bride.
We also performd a soft rendition of "Arioso" during a Unity Candlelighting ceremony.
At the end we performed our mix of "ode to Joy" (Beethoven) into "All You Need is Love" (Beatles). They wrote to us to thank us so much for the music and to let us know that they had received many compliments on the string quartet from their family and guests.
They were wisked away into an air conditioned limousine heading towards a fun reception and celebration nearby. We wish them a lifetime of happiness!

On 7/31/10 Maite and Michael partied at the fabulous Mandarin Oriental Hotel.
Our String Quartet performed at their wedding cocktail hour and also provided the music for their entrance into the ballroom which was our version of
"Bittersweet Symphony"!
They looked wonderful and seemed to be having a fabulous time.
we wish them as well as Maite's 2 children, a lifetime of happiness!

On 8/8/10 Jay and Rachel were married at the Bryant Park Grill in Manhattan.
Our string Trio performed at their wedding ceremony. Their request and quest to find
happy sounding Jewish ceremonial music was fulfilled with the following selections:
"Mibon Siach" (a special version they found which I arranged for String Trio after receiving a lead sheet from Avremi G, a Jewish music expert), followed by
"Mibon" for the Groom's Entrance and the "Dodi Li" written by Steven Sher and made famous by a version performed years ago by Peter Paul and Mary.
We performed their requests for guest seating which included "All I Want is You" by U2, "Here Comes the Sun" by the Beatles, and "She's Got a Way" by Billy Joel.
The Recessional music was the traditional Jewish music, "Siman tov-mazel tov" followed by our arrangement of "All YOu Need is Love" by the Beatles.
The Ceremony was performed by a very nice rabbi from a temple in Manhasset, Long Island.
We wish them a liftime of happiness!

Future projects for Capriccio include:
Concerts this fall at various locations around Westchester County.
A recording of music by Piano and Violin, coming soon!

Many private events and weddings this month, August, and in September, October and November....highlights to be posted soon.
From all of us here..enjoy the rest of the summertime! Although hot, it's a great time for parties, swimming, and to enjoy lovely evenings without wearing a coat :)

Recent Events and Wedding Performances

2010-07-17T20:07:00.000-07:00

I hope you are having a wonderful summer!
We have been very busy with many different events, packaging and sending information for future concerts and wih our wedding performances.

Wedding Stand Outs: 6/26/10 at the Central Park Zoo!
While performing for the Bride, the Sea Lions swam and danced within our sight!

7/9/10 at the beautiful O Bryne Chapel at Reid Castle on grounds of Manhattanville College for a lovely (although warm inside with no AC!) ceremony followed by a cocktail hour at the Fountainhead of New Rochelle. Kristin and Dave were a beautiful couple and so nice and gracious. It was a pleasure to perform for them on their most special day! We performed their requests at the cocktail hour which included "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica and "Eleanor Rigby" by the Beatles. Their wedding Recessional was "Bittersweet Symphony".

7/10/10, The Tides Estate in N. Haledon, NJ. Although it was a rainy day, the warmth and all the love between Robert and Diana gave the effect of a sunny day. It was great being there! Their Recessional was the very opening strains of "Wedding March" flowing into "Bittersweet Symphony".

7/16/10, Lands End in Sayville, NY (Long Island south shore) for Leighann and Marlon. An absolutely stunning couple. Their ceremony was held outdoors very close to the ocean. The winds were picking up, the humidity was high, the sun was shining and the bride and groom were radiant.
We performed an all rock song ceremony for them including "All I Want is You" by U2 for their bridal Party, "Thank You" by Led Zeppelin for Leighann's entrance and their Recessoinal was "All You Need is Love" by the Beatles. At the cocktail hour we performed all of their requests which included:
"Just Like Heaven", the Cure, "Never Tear us Apart", INXS, "Paranoid", Black Sabbath, "Eleanor Rigby", the Beatles, "November Rain" by Guns n Roses, and "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve.

updates and recent events and wedddings ...coming soon.
On Sunday 7/18 we have 2 dfferent Trio's performing at 2 locations:
The Glen Island Harbour club, Trio of Violin, Flute, Cello for a Ceremony under the Tent and
also a Trio of all Strings, 1 Violin, 1 Viola, and Cello at Harbor Links Golf Club
for a cocktail hour reception, in Pt. Washington.
..we are looking forward to being a part of both events!

Thank you for reading our latest news :)

Concert and Montauk

2010-06-06T08:47:00.000-07:00

The concert performance was a great experience. Although a concert at 10 AM is not as customary as a concert at 1 PM or 7 or 8 PM we did our very bestand I was able to video the entire performance. Working on and performing the gorgeous and rarely played "Intermezzo" (featured in film of same title in the 1940's starring Ingrid Bergman and Leslie Howard) by Heinz Provost was a treat to play.

This past weekend I travelled out to Montauk NY for a beachside performance.
The staff of the venue, Gurney's Inn, is great. They are very professional and hospitable. The inn sets above the sea and the views are magnificent.
The performance was by just me as a Solo Violinist for a ceremony held at the beach. The music was a mix of soft romantic classical and contemporary songs old n new for the seating of the guests. The Processionals were "Air" from Watermusic (appropriate for the seaside setting!) and "Canon in D" by Pachelbel for the bride.
The Recessional was as in the home page of our website: Selection is...
"Ode to Joy" by Beethoven flowing into "All You Need is Love" by the Beatles. For exit pieces I also performed "Here Comes the Sun" and "When I'm 64".
The Bride and Groom were beautiful and looked very happy after the ceremony as they went onto the beach itself for more pics!
Afterwards I travelled out to Monatauk Pt. with my hubby who was travelling with me for the day and we enjoyed the area and the lighthouse and took some pretty photos out there. We then travelled up to Sag Harbor where I was able to do a little shopping and enjoy the pretty harbor itself.
All in all 6/5/10 was a beautiful day!

Concert June 1st 2010

2010-05-26T20:15:00.001-07:00

On Tuesday June 1st 2010 at 10 AM there will be

a Concert-"Play Down" of the Westchester Musicians Guild.
The Concert will Feature Violinist Natalie Kriegler (Artistic Director
of the Capriccio Ensemble) and Pianist Chia-Li Sung.
Together they will perform the 1st movement of Sonata in F Major (1820) by
Felix Mendelssohn and "Intermezzo" by Provost.

The concert is being held at a private residence:
Address:
#2 Colonial Lane, Larchmont, NY 10538

Feel free to attend and bring a friend or guest. The program is open to everyone and there is no admission fee.

Street parking is available

New Review!

2010-05-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

Sort: Recently Reviewed on the Wedding Channel/www.weddingchannel.com |
Rating: 5 stars

Wedding: 3/28/2010
Member Since: 2/27/2009

Beautiful! posted 5/13/2010
I used the ensemble for my March 28 wedding! They did a beautiful job...used a strings trio! They did both the ceremony and the cocktail hour. It was a beautiful start to our day and Natalie was wonderful to work with. Many were very impressed, with their professionalism and talent. I highly recommend them!!

This Weekend's Weddings and Our Up coming Events!

2010-05-03T23:42:00.001-07:00

This coming Saturday Evening, May 8th 2010 a Duet of Violin and Cello will perform and share in the joy of the Wedding Ceremony of Caroline and Gregory.
The 2 lovely people met in their home country of Brussels and are both employed as Tax Attorney's for Deloitte Inc.
The Wedding will be held at "Rouge Tomate" a restaurant located at #10 E. 60th St. which specializes in Belgian cuisine!
We are looking forward to being a part of their very special day :)

On Sunday, Mother's Day, May 9th 2010 our String Trio will perform at the beautiful Oheka Castle in Huntington for the Wedding of Danielle and Michael.
Traditional music will be performed at the ceremony which will be held out in the
magnificent garden, weather permitting.
Selections they have chosen for the ceremony are mainly classical and traditional with a little touch of music from "The Muppets" as their Recessional selection: "The Rainbow Connection"!
They have requested mainly jazzy and contemporary songs for performance at the cocktial hour.
We are looking forward to performing for them on Sunday!

On Tuesday May 11th a Duet of Violin and Piano by
the Capriccio Ensemble will perform at a Bridal Show held aboard
"The Skyline Princess" at 1 World's Fair Marina. The Yacht will be docked (not setting sail!) and we will begin performing our music at 5:45 PM.
Doors to the main show and other vendors will open at 6 PM.
Admission is free.

On Friday Evening May 14th our String Trio will perform at Villa Barone Hilltop Manor for the Wedding Ceremony and Cocktail Hour of Jennifer Marie and Anthony.
I have been in touch with Jennifer Marie since January of 2009. She has been a doll to work with and we are all truly looking forward to performing at their wedding!
The selections they have chosen for the ceremony are an eclectic and romantic combination of songs and classical music.
As the guests arrive we are to perform all classical selections.
For the Seating Of Family we will perform "Through the Eyes of Love"/"Theme from Ice Castles" by Marvin Hamlish
For the Wedding Attendants and Flower Girl/Ring Bearer we will perform "Canon in D" by Pachelbel
For Jennifer's Entrance we are performing the traditional music, "Bridal Chorus" by Wagner ("Here Comes the Bride")
During the Ceremony for the Unity Candlelighting we are performing the opening of
"Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve, as specially requested by Anthony!
For their Wedding Recessional Music they have selected "Thank You" by Led Zeppelin.
This is a song I arranged about 8 years ago for a bride and groom for whom we performed up at West Point Military Academy. I have always found it to be a beautiful and very romantic song.
For their cocktail hour they have requested all Sinatra, Italian songs, light jazzy songs, and contemporary songs.
I have no doubt that Jennifer Marie will be an absolutely stunning bride and again we are really looking forward to 5/14!

On Saturday May 15th we are privileged to be a part of the most special day of Karen and Bill which will be held at The Fountainhead of New Rochelle.
At 11 AM I will be there playing my violin at the door for the arrival of the guests.
Their ceremony will be held in the upstairs chapel.
I will be joined by a Pianist and we are going to perform, as per their request, the following beautiful selections:
1. "Canon in D" by Pachelbel for the Entrance of the Officiant, Groom and Best Man
2. "Hornpipe" from Watermusic by Handel for the entrance of the Bridesmaids, Flower Girl and Ring bearer
3. "Trumpet Voluntary" by Clarke for the Bride/for Karen's Entrance
4. "The Swan" by Saint Saens very close to the opening of the ceremony for a moment of calm and reflection
5. "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring" for a Unity Candlelighting
6. "Wedding March" (traditional music) for the Recessional music.
At the cocktail hour we will perform mainly American standards/jazzy songs and showtunes with a few contemporary songs and Beatles songs mixed in.

Events for the Week of May 17th: Coming soon!

End of April Performances!

2010-04-25T20:56:00.000-07:00

This month came to a close with 3 very fun weddings which we were honored to be a part of!
The first was the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour of Megan and Rob at the Glen Island Harbour Club on 4/23/10.
The bride was stunning and the groom ever so gracious. Our string trio performed traditional Processional music and we performed "In my Life" by the Beatles, selected by the bride and groom for the Recessional music.

At the cocktail hour they opted for the string trio to perform all vintage and contemporary songs from Cole Porter to Cold Play! It was alot of fun and the guests enjoyed the recognizable songs we performed from "All You Need is Love", "When I'm 64", to "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" and "Clocks"!

On April 24th, a totally magnificent weather day with clear skies and beautifully comofortable temperatures hovering in the low 60's, I travelled to Brooklyn to perform with our cellist to form a String Duo for the Ceremony of the lovely and wonderful couple Heather and Matt!
The church was beautiful and historic. The Deacon and the music director were very nice and hospitable to work with.
The bride was absolutely stunning and radiant> I do not think I have ever seen a bride (except for me at my own wedding!) smiling so beautifully and with such sparkle on her wedding day as Heather was!
The ceremony was perfect, everything was on schedule and they were off to a park in Brooklyn to take more pic's before heading out to their venue for the reception which was the Jericho Terrace in Mineola NY.
A shout out to "Double Diamond Limousine Co". I thought the drivers were all being so nice and so helpful to everyone. They were polite, courteous and serving champagne. the cars looked great. I have never met them before however I was really impressed by the cars, the guys and their nice demeanor and how polite and professional they were!

Our weekend concluded with a very touching ceremony held at "The Narrow Door Pentacostal Church" on Sherman Avenue in Northern Manhattan...very north as in Inwood.
We performed once again as a Duet of Violin and Cello. We began performing out music for the arrival of the guests at 3:10 PM. I was very touched at how the staff of the church was cleaning everywhere when we arrived.
There was also a gentleman from the church who offered us both a special parking pass to double park near the church (very nice gesture for us) however we were both already parked safely.
We performed an eclectic mix of selections for the seating of guests from Duets by Telemann to arrangements of music from Wastermusic by Handel, to Spanish songs such as "Cuando Caliente el Sol" and "Sulamente una Vez" as well as "Can You feel the Love tonight".
The selected Processionals were:
"Canon in D" for the Seating of Mothers and 2 sets of God Parents
"Wedding Song" by Kenny G for the Bridesmaids, 2 Flower Girls and 1 Ring bearer
"Because You Loved Me" by Celine Dion for the Bride's entrance with her Father.
The Bride recieved astounding applause from the congregation as she processed down the aisle and she looked amazaing..very beautiful!
Our good friend and colleauge Tara from Exquisite Affairs Productions was on hand to help everyone and to provide us with cues and it was lovely to see her as she had had a baby boy recently who is adorable and she looked GREAT.
We wish Margie and Kerlin....as well as
Heather and Matt (4/24/10)
and
Megan and Rob (4/23/10)
a LIFETIME OF HAPPINESS!!

Coming Soon:
4/28/10: Capriccio Ensemble Duet of Violin and Cello (can you tell that I like performing with Duets?!) at the
SPRING BRIDAL SHOW AT PELHAM SPLIT ROCK GOLF CLUB; 870 SHORE ROAD, BRONX, NY 10464
FEEL FREE TO COME BY ANY TIME BETWEEN 7 PM - 9 PM.
FOR ORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT TAMMY OR ANGELA AT
718-229-2570.
TO LET US KNOW THAT YOU ARE ATTENDING/TO REQUEST FAVORITE SONGS FOR US TO BE SURE TO HAVE WITH US TO PLAY FOR YOU...PLEASE CONTACT ME, NATALIE @ 917-273-9183
OR VIA E-MAIL TO NDK1CAPRICCIO@MSN.COM

ALSO Coming Soon:
Our Last April Bride and Groom:
Danielle and Michael at the Cresthollow Country Club in Woodbury NY on April 30th for their Ceremony and Cocktail Hour...once again we are a Duet of Violin and Cello and we are looking forward to performing for them!

Review of Capriccio Ensemble

2010-04-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

Capriccio Ensemble A+++++++++
They did the music for our ceremony and cocktail hour! They did an amazing job. I will be honest in saying I was not at the cocktail hour, but people were impressed by it. For the wedding ceremony, the music was absolutely beautiful. And our recessional was beatles...and it was perfect! Natalie is great to work with.

The above is a review of our String Trio by a Bride whose wedding we recently performed at. The a Wedding Ceremony held at
Manhattanville College @ O'Byrne Chapel followed by a Cocktail Hour at which we also performed, held at the Fountainhead in New Rochelle NY on 3/28/10.

A Wonderful Thank You Note We Received!

2010-04-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

Dear Natalie,
I just wanted to say "thank you" for the great work you and the other musicians did at our wedding. You gave such good guidance when we were trying to make our selections, and, as a result, the music was *perfect*. I really appreciated your group's ability to play traditional and contemporary musical selections; it made our wedding feel very personal. Also, y'all really rolled with the punches when we were faced with horrible weather and a late start time -- thank you! The music at our ceremony really made it special. Please feel free to give my information to any of your potential clients who want references. I've got nothing but great things to say! --
Meggan Ways
225 East 57th Street,#6L
New York, NY 10022
732-754-1012

The above letter was received via E-mail on April 3rd 2010.
We performed at Meggan and Jon's Wedding Ceremony on March 13th at
"The Foundry" in Long Island City.
It was a very beautiful wedding and Meggan is such a nice person!
She and I met at my residence to discuss music and more
several months prior to our being reserved to perform at her wedding.
We performed her special requests for Prelude music/music as the guests assembled for the Ceremony:
1. Largo from Winter from the Four Seasons by Vivaldi
2. Some Enchanted Evening by Richard Rodgers from South Pacific
3. Someone to Watch Over me by Gerswhin
4. La Vie en rose by Louiguy-Piaf

For the Ceremony we performed 4 Processionals:
1. Simple Gifts for the entrance of the Rabbi and seating of Family
2. "Thank You", by Led Zeppelin and arranged by me/Natalie Kriegler
for the entrance of the Groomsmen and the Groom and his Parents
3. "Allegro" from Spring of the Four Seasons by Vivaldi for the Bridesmaids
4. "She's Got a Way" by Billy Joel, arranged by me/Natalie Kriegler, for the Bride/For Meggan's entrance with her parents
The Wedding Recessional was Siman Tov - Mazel tov into a dance medley of Jewish favorites from Hava Nagia to Shalom Alechem and Dayenu.
It was a difficult night for travel as it was the night of a huge
storm during which many residents of Long Island, Westchester and New Jersey
lost their power!
Considering how bad of an evening it was weather wise the bus with many of the wedding guests was only about 10-15 minutes late to the ceremony.
I was with our cellist Eugene and we were driving to LIC from another wedding which we had performed at a Catholic Church in Florham Park NJ. We drove on the Palisades Parkway for a bit and it was so devastating to see the felled trees over the roadway, policemen everywhere and cars stuck in the ditches in between the north and soutbound areas of the highway!
It's one of those nights we can't forget.
Our home in lower Westchester was blacked out for a few days lol.
We hope everyone reading this fared well on that night :)

Thanks for reading this!

a bit of News for early Spring!

2010-03-11T23:10:00.000-08:00

Every year in early March around the time of my birthday it is the signal for ....spring coming soon!
This weekend don't forget to "spring forward"...getting a jumpstart on more daylight time :)

We have a few events coming up which are noteworthy:

1. We recently donated a Prize via the WOTY (wedding of the year) which is produced every year by liweddings.com
Many prizes are given out there to brides and grooms from ipods to TV's, to day of coordinators and to the prize we gave which is:
Harp and Violin music for Prelude and Processionals.
The Winner: Joanne and Justin for their Wedding to be held at St. Thomas Church in Brookville. We are looking forward to being a part of their beautiful day!

2. Very recently Capriccio Ensemble was reserved for a wedding at Oheka Castle for 3/27.
The bride and groom love the music of Vivaldi, and Handel and Mozart. We are looking forward to a very classy evening at the beautiful and unique Oheka Castle located in Huntington NY. We are providing a String Trio of 2 violins and cello.

3. Also quite recently and after meeting our lovely bride to be at a bridal showcase held at the County Center in White Plains NY, we are now reserved for both a wedding ceremony to be held at Manhattanville College inside Reid Castle's Chapel with cocktail hour to follow at the Fountainhead of New Rochelle. This will take place on 3/28/10 and we are providing a String Trio of 1 violin, 1 viola and 1 cello for both the ceremony and cocktail hour.

4. Capriccio Ensemble is recommended at the stunning, rencently rennovated Surf Club of New Rochelle. I am a fan of Chris Gizzo who is the General Manager there and also of Jaime Gizzo and his beautiful new wife whose wedding our string quartet performed at in December and I have to mention Artie, the new and so energetic and helpful coordinator and designer at the Surf Club. He's got some great ideas and concepts. If your wedding will be held at the Surf Club, you are in really good hands in terms of flowers, lighting, decor and much more!
We just found out that the owner of the Surf Club, Sal Gizzo is getting married on April 3rd and we are now scheduled to provide a String Trio (perhaps with flute) to perform at the ceremony which will be held at the Surf Club! This is so exciting and Mr. Gizzo and his fiance look so happy and radiant. We are honored to be included in their special day and wish them all the best always!

Our Many Bridal Shows/Live Performances this Winter!

2010-02-13T23:19:00.000-08:00

Capriccio Ensemble is busy preparing for many live bridal showcases and performances in February and March!

We have recently performed for Bridal Shows held at:
1. The Crowne Plaza Hotel on 1/11/10: I performed myself for a little while at the entrance...on my violin!

2. At the Surf Club of New Rochelle NY on 1/13/10 an "Everything Bridal" show. We performed as a Duet of Violin and Cello.

3. At the Westchester County Bridal Expo held on 1/30/10 with a Duet of Harp and Violin performing from 11 AM - 1:30 and a String Trio and Duet of Violin and Cello from 2 PM - 4 PM

4. On 2/17/10 at the Surf Club of New Rochelle at their Preferred Vendors/Recommended vendors showcase; We performed in the lobby on the lower landing of the beautiful all new double sweetheart staircase in the lobby, as a Duet of Flute and Violin.

5,. On 2/18/10 at Villa Russo's in Richmond Hills NY. We performed as a Duet of Harp and Violin.

We will perform live for a bridal show next on 3/10/10 at the Surf Club of New Rochelle as a Duet of 2 Violins.
The following eveining on 3/11/10 we will perform live at a bridal show held at the Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel in Flushing (Queens) NY. We will perform as Duo of Violin and Piano.

Athough we are opting to perform as duo's for the bridal shows you can reserve us via any instrumental solo or combination that you fancy. Please feel free to inquire about the various ensembles we offer and instrumentations, or solo performers!

Our recent and up coming schedule of booked performances:
1. 1/29/10 at Manhattan Penthouse, NYC. I performed on my Violin as a soloist at the ceremony of our stunning bride and very handsome groom and our pianist performed an all jazzy cocktail hour.

2. On 2/6/10 at a Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Yonkers NY a duet of violin and cello performed beautiful music for guest seating, the Processional Rececssional and Exit music for the Greek mass of Christina and Peter. Our repertoire included their requests for Disney songs, a charming but simple arrangement of "La vie en Rose", and a rousing conclusion/recessional performance of "Bittersweet Symphony" which I arranged especially for our string team!

3. 2/6/10 a special commemorative service was held at St. John's Episcopal Church/St. John's on the Hill in Tuckahoe NY. I performed "Ave Maria" by JS Bach-Gounod with the accompaniment of the fabulous staff organist and choir master of St. Johns, Church, Ann Patton and my sister Amy, flutist and fellow founding member of Capriccio Ensemble also performed a solo for the service with organ accompaniment which was an arrangement for Flute and Organ or piano called "Simple Gifts".

4. On 2/19/10 I was reserved quite last minute/on 2/14/10 for performance as a Solo Violinist at the wedding ceremony of Alicia and Ed which was held at "The Brownstone" in W. Paterson NJ. The groom was a member of Hoboken's finest/Hoboken PD and the ceremony room was filled with many officers from the team. The bride entered to her favorite strains of "Canon in D" by Pachelbel and the Bride and Groom exited as the all new Mr. and Mrs to "All You Need is Love" by the Beatles performed by me on my violin. The comments that I received were that the sound was very festive even as performed by just me/one single violinist with no accompaniment and I wanted to share that as many of you may be "on a budget" and perhaps 1 solo violin can be under your consideration as a choice for ceremony music as a beautiful classy live element for your very special day and to help to make your wedding ceremony that much more enjoyable and memorable!

5. 2/20/10: another very late reservation came through via a recommendation by the venue, Seamens Church Institute in lower Manhattan at 241 Water Street right next to the South Street Seaport..a request came in on Friday 2/12 to Capriccio Ensemble for a solo instrument to perform at the up coming ceremony of Anabel and her fiance David. As no violinist or cellist were available Capriccio Ensemble provided the couple with a lovely Flute soloist for the ceremony. Selections by Pachelbel, Schubert, Handel as well as a performance of "Amazing Grace" were the music which was performed by the flutist, for this very special occasion.

6. 2/20/10 a Duet of Violin and Cello performed at the 3 West Club for the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour of Russell and Camilla. Their selections for the ceremony/Processionals were very traditional. I chose a soft sweet selection, "Minuet" from "Minuet and Dance of the Blessed Spirits" by CW GLuck for their Candle lighting portion which began with their mothers lighting the 2 side tapers and concluded with the couple lighting the main candle.
At the cocktail hour we performed Sinatra songs, showtunes, light jazzy songs, Beatles songs and vintage rock songs concluding with "Bittersweet Symphony".
There is a breathtaking view of the top of St. Patrick's Cathedral from the 9th floor cocktail hour room. To us it is alot of fun to see this as we have worked with Dr. Jennifer Pascual, the Director of Music of the Cathedral of St. Patrick on numerous occasions and we have even performed on the grounds of the church (on W. 51st St closer to Madison Avenue) for a special private event the Cardinal sponsored to raise money for a children's charity that is near and dear to him.

This weekend on 3/5 I am celebrating another birthday and I have not taken any performance work for the entire weekend. ....orders of my husband who says he has plans :)

We have several events in March one of which is the performance (worth a free service we offered which is a value of a minimum of $700.00) of 1 Harp and 1 Violin at a wedding mass won as a prize by a lovely bride and groom named Joanna and Justin via the WOTY which is the "Wedding of the Year" sponsored by liweddings.com every year in January where lots of prizes and free services by many advertisors are a part of the festivities.
This will occur on 3/.20/10 at a Catholic Church in Brookville NY.

We are also performing as a String Trio of 2 Violins and Cello for the
Wedding Ceremony of the owner of "My Bellissima" which is a full wedding coordinating salon. The wedding of Laura Bianco takes place at a Catholic church in Florham Park, NJ on 3/13/10 in the afternoon. The selections she has chosen are:
"Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring" by JS Bach for the Entrance and Seating of Family and as the Mother's will light the side candles
"She's got a Way" by Billy Joel for the Bridesmaids
"Canon in D" for Laura/the Bride's Entrance
"Minuet" by CW Gluck as the Bride and Groom light the Main Candle together
"Ode to Joy (Beethoven) going into "All You Need is Love" by the Beatles and to conclude
with exit selections: "When I'm 64" by the Beatles and "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve

On the evening of 3/13/10 we perform for Meggan and Jon
at the Foundry of L.I.C via a String Quartet. Meggan has chosen these selections:
For Prelude:
Erev Shel Shoshanim
Largo from Winter from the Four Seasons by Vivaldi
Some Enchanted Evening by Richard Rodgers
La Vie en Rose

The Processionals are an eclectic and romantic mix of:
"Simple Gifts" for Grandparents and Parents
"Thank You" (my arrangement) for the Groomsmen through the entrance of the Groom and his Parents
"Allegro" from Spring of the Four Seasons by Vivaldi
"She's Got a Way" by Billy Joel for Meggan/the Bride's Special Music
The Recessional is "Siman Tov-Mazel Tov flowing into a Jewish medley of dance music including Chosen Mazel tov.

On 3/20 we perform for the WOTY Bride..described fully above.
On 3/27 a String trio of 2 violins and cello will perform at a wedding ceremony and cocktail hour to be held at the exquisite Oheka Castle. Music selections are TBD
On 3/28/10 a String trio of 1 violin, 1 viola and 1 cello shall perform at a wedding ceremony
and also at a wedding cocktail hour in Westchester with the ceremony to be held at the O'Bryne Chapel on the grounds of Manhattanville College and the cocktail hour to be held at the Fountainhead of New Rochelle NY.

We are looking forward to all of the shows, and performances ahead and are very grateful for all of the performance work and opportunities!

Wishing everyone a Happy early spring! If we think "spring" it will be here sooner than we all know....all the best

Natalie and Capriccio Ensemble

Christmas Season

2009-12-07T23:08:00.001-08:00

In a time of a down economy music lights up all of our lives and we are happy to be performing (Update since last writing for this particular blog!) once again on Friday, December 18th 2009 for the annual Holiday Festivities at the headquarters of American Express here in NY. Since 2004 we have provided either a trio or quartet of musicians for employees and families of American Express at #200 Vesey St in Manhattan. Our music begins at 7:45 AM as the employees and their families gather for the day's festivities which are produced by Johhny Jones of Peppermint Productions. He'll be there as always in his adorable santa hat and will be coordinating the story tellers, elves, beautiful Xmas tree and decorations, clowns, and much more!
This year we will provide an Ensemble of Violin, Harp and Cello.

Our early December included the very beautiful and spiritual (fully described in our last post) concerts held at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers. Thankfully the concerts were held as always and our String Quartet performed at the concerts for a lovely program of holiday and classical/seasonal music.

On December 12th our String Quartet performed at St. Joseph's Church Roman Catholic Church at 15 Cedar St. in Bronxville NY for the Nuptial Mass of Jaime Gizzo and Amy Adamo. It was a beautiful wedding, with a stunning bride and adorable groom and we were honored and very happy to be a part of their special day. Later that evening my husband (after having not one but rather 2 (!!!) flat tires reparied...we attended their fabulous and fun filled wedding reception as guests, held at the beautiful and newly rennovated Surf Club in New Rochelle. Jaime along with his brother Chris who is the General Manager, is a banquet manager at the Surf Club. His family owns and manages the Surf Club.

On Christmas Eve many of us will perform for a church service. I personally, along with my sister Amy (founding member of Capriccio) will perform at St. John's Episcopal Church on 100 Underhill Avenue, Tuckahoe, NY. The Service begins at 10:00 PM with Prelude Music. There will be a chamber choir and organist who is also the music director for the church, Ann Patton who shall perform and conduct the music at the service.

We wish you and yours a Happy & Joyous Kwanzaa, a Very Happy Hannukah, and a Very Merry Christmas!

2009-12-03T22:13:00.000-08:00

CONCERTS, This Weekend!

12/5/09 at 7:30 PM and again on 12/6/09 at 3:00 PM our String Quartet performs at St. Joseph's Seminary: 201 Seminary Avenue, Yonkers, NY 10704.
The Concert is being held this year during Advent. The program consists of Christmas songs and seasonal music. There will also be a full performance of a Mass by Boccherini, featuring, Our String Quartet (!), Vocal Soloists, a Choir, Trumpets, Tympani, and Organ. The Concert is conducted by by Dr. Jennifer Pascual, Director of Music of the Cathedral of St. Patrick and produced by the NY Roman Catholic Archdiocese. The Seminary is a beautiful and spiritual place. The Pope almost always pays a visit to the St. Joseph's Seminary when he is in the US.

Please visit our website proper: http://www.capriccioensemble.com/showcases.html for information as to how to obtain tickets. Unfortunately at this time we have no more comp's available..they have all been previously requested by other brides, family and by my violin students!

Next Saturday, 12/12/09 Capriccio Ensemble's String Quartet will perform at the Wedding of Amy Adamo and Jaime Gizzo at St. Joseph's Church in Bronxville (lots of St. Joseph's in our agenda!).

My husband and I have been privileged to know the Gizzo family, of which Jaime is a member, for many years and it is an honor to be a part of Amy and Jaime's beautiful wedding day!
Amy has chosen these selections to be performed at her Nuptial Mass:

Prelude Music: Christmas music and Seasonal Classical Music will be performed by the String Quartet. As the guests enter St. Joseph's Church selections to include Largo from Winter of The Four Seasons, highlights from the "Christmas Concerto" by Arcangelo Corelli, "Angels we have heard on high", "selections from "the Messiah" by G.F. Handel and "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" will be performed in the Choir Loft.

Seating of Family: "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring" by JS Bach, String Quartet

Wedding Attendants Processional: "Canon in D" by Johann Pachelbel, String Quartet

The Bride/Amy's Entrance: "Trumpet Voluntary", by Clarke, JP Strybos, Organist at St. Joseph's Church

Responsorial Selections will mainly be sung and performed by JP Strybos, Vocalist and Organist at St. Joseph's Church.

Unity Candelighting by the Bride and Groom: "Silent Night, Holy Night". String Quartet

Offeratory/Presentation of the Gifts: "Ave Verum" by WA Mozart, String Quartet

The Sign of the Peace: "What Child is This"/"Greensleeves" traditional English Hymn, String Quartet

The Mass of Creation, sung and performed by JP Strybos with accompaniment by Natalie, Violinist.

Communion Hymn: "O Holy Night" sung by JP Strybos with the accompaniment of our String Quartet and the Organ

Presentation of Flowers to the Blessed Mother: "Ave Maria", Schubert, sung by JP Strybos with the accompaniment of the Organ and our String Quartet

Wedding Recessional Music: "Hornpipe" from the Watermusic Suite by G. F. Handel

Wedding Postlude and Exit Music: "Joy to the World" and "Alleluia" from the Messiah. by G.F. Handel, performed by the String Quartet

Upon the conclusion of the Mass, my husband and I will attend the reception for Amy and Jaime which will be held at the beautiful Surf Club of New Rochelle!

Sometime either the week after the wedding of Amy and Jaime I will be playing music with my dear friend Luellen who is a "Diva of the Subway" and I will be joining her one day to play Christmas and other seasonal music at Vanderbilt Markety located in Grand Central Station..TBA!

The next booked performance I have scheduled is for Christmas Eve however as of this posting I am not sure at which church I shall perform as I have been invited to perform at 2 and both services are at the same time..decisions decisions!

This year has been a very full one for me and for all of us. Our summer and fall consisted of many wonderful performances and opportunites. Highlights of our year include:
1. the Concerts at "Epiphany" held last January at St. Joseph's Seminary
2. a Concert at Temple Beth Torah performed by a Trio of Violin, (myself), Flute (Amy, my sister) and a Pianist, Kathy
3. Many memorable wedding and private event performances which occured in (to name a few beautifully done events and great locations!), Croton Point Park, The Carltun of Eisenhower Park, The Surf Club of New Rochelle, The Glen Island Harbour Club, New Rochelle, Vineyard Estate Caterers, Aquebogue, Lyndhurst Castle, Tarrytown, the Old Field Club, the Palace of Somerset Park, Westbury Manor, The Fox Hollow, The Woodbury Country Club, the Cresthollow Country Club, The Country Club of Darien, and of course all of the wonderful, sweet churches where we performed this year from Forest Hills, Manhattan, Harrison, to Centerport.

With my husband being ill...and now all better!..it's time for a short vacay! Destination TBD, however someplace warm and by the beach is being discussed.

Wishing everyone who has read this the happiest of holidays and a Great New year!...see you here in 2010 :)

2009-11-14T23:18:00.000-08:00

As the season of many wedding performances (there were 20 performances for our ensemble as well as for me as a solo violinist) in the month of October alone) dwindles the ensemble plans ahead!

1. We shall be recording 2 serious/"authentic" classical selections this week one of which is a Mozart "Fugue". The recording is a tribute to a colleague who is a great musician as well as musical arranger.
2. We will be creating our own videotape via live performance as we read great music by Mozart and Verdi, this week.
3. Work in Progress! Arrangements of many Italian songs will be written soon.
The intention of all of the creation of arrangements of these songs for string quartet is to then record a CD for sale which may be titled "Italy meeets Rat Pack" (lol we are sure they had in the 40's, 50's and 60's when some of these songs were originally written and recorded by Sinatra, Dean Martin and others)! or "Capriccio Ensemble performs Italian songs and rat pack faves". Which title do you prefer? Please be sure to let us know!
The CD will include Italian songs and selections which either I or friends of mine have arranged for us of Sinatra songs by Porter, Gershwin, Jones, Hupfeld, Warren and more.
Live Performances in November included:
1. the Bridal Expo held at the Surf Club of New Rochelle by "Everything Bridal Shows" on
11/4/09 where our String Trio and String Duo performed classical, soft romantic and also contemporary songs.
2. Our String Quartet at the Greek Cathedral in Manhattan at 319 E. 74th St. on 11/7/09.
3. Solo Violinist Natalie Kriegler (me) at the Westbury Manor on 11/14/09 for an Italian themed cocktail hour. I learned several all new Italian songs such as "Mala Femmina", "Anema e Core", Oh Marie", "Arrivederci Roma", "Maria Elena" and I included favorites I already knew such as "O Sole Mio", "Santa Lucia", "Torna Sorrento", "Volare", "Al di La". Sinatra songs and other popular "rat pack" songs were also played for the 300 guests who were situated in 3 different and adjoining rooms.
4. Rehearsal on 11/18/09 Violinist (me) and Pianist for special concert..details soon! Selections shall include soft virtuoso violin showstoppers auch as "Intermezzo" and as well as Broadway showtunes.
5. String Quartet reading and taping as well as videotaping, on 11/19/09.
6. The performances for 11/21/09 are tbd and if not confirmed soon, a mini vacation is planned for me and my husband!
7. Thanksgiving week will have many of our members substituting at Broadway shows (when I was a substitute on Broadway and also at the Radio City Music Hall Thanksgiving eve, day and weekend were always days that I could hands down count on to perform in place of the regular violinsts who had me "on call"!) as well as enjoying a great dinner on T-Day with family.
8. 11/28/09 Solo Violinist, Natalie Kriegler (me) performs at st. Francis Church, Hoboken along with organist Bob Myers and a solo singer for the Nuptial Mass of Victoria BonFrisco.

December schedule and details of our events coming soon!
Thanks for reading our latest news :)
Natalie,
Artistic Director of
The Capriccio Ensemble by Scarlett Music Inc.

2009-10-15T22:49:00.001-07:00

We performed on the Radio Show of Dr. Jennifer Pascual on Monday!

We performed "Gigue" by Pachelbel, "Allegro con brio", the first movement of String Quartet in G Major, Opus 54 No. 1 by Haydn, "Romanze" from Trio Opus 10 by Dohnanyi, a brand new piece of music written by Mike Lee for his sister Genevieve's wedding Processional music (wedding ceremony on 10/11/09) titled "I Want to Marry You" and we also performed a sampling of our contemporary songs which included "Groovy Kind of Love", "Never Tear Us Apart" by the INXS, and "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve/Rolling Stones.

We were all interviewed by Dr. Jennifer Pascual.
The show airs on 10/26/09 at 1:00 PM on the Sirius Sattelite Radio Network Chatholic Channel 159/Sirius XM 117.

This weekend we are at the beautiful Boathouse of Central Park for a ceremony to be performed by a Duet of Harp and Violin.

Next Wednesday, October 21st we are performing also as a Duet of Harp and Violin for the Autumn Bridal Show to be held at the Pelham Split Rock Golf Club on Shore Road, Bronx, NY from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM in the "Rotunda'.

The following weekend is one of our busiest performance weekends to date with weddings and private events all weekend. We shall perform each wedding with the exception of one as a full string quartet.
The weddings/private events take place at:
The North Ritz Club, Syosset NY (Friday evening)
The Crabtree Kittle House, Chappaqua, NY
The North Ritz Club, Syosset, NY (Saturday evening)
The Atlantica of Westhampton Beach
Vetro by Russo's on the Bay which is the newer and smaller more intimate venue just down the street from Russo's on the Bay on Cross Bay Blvd.

The weekend completes with our String Quartet ON THE AIR! On Monday October 26th
at 1:00 PM until 2:00 PM, again on the Sirius Sattelite Network Catholic Channel 159/Sirius XM 117 hotessed by Dr. Jennifer Pascual, Director of Music of the Cathedral of St. Patric, NY NY!

Thank you for reading our latest news. ..will be back soon with last of the month events and new events coming up soon, in November!

Natalie Kriegler,
Artistic Director

2009-09-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

Hi from Capriccio Ensemble.

Our latest news!
Our String Quartet will be featured on the Catholic Channel 159 on the Sirius Sattelite Network.
The Radio show is hosted by Dr. Jennifer Pascual, the Director of Music for the Cathedral of St. Patrick NYC.
Date: October 12th 2009
Time: 1:00 PM
Tune in at that time to check us out LIVE!

Our schedule this year in September and October includes wonderful events at which we are participating.
Locations where we shall perform include:

Our Lady of Magnificat Church, Ocean Beach/Fire Island NY
The Tides Estate, North Haledon, NJ
The Old Field Club, Setauket, NY
Seventh Day Adventist Church, Wayne, NJ
The Royalton of Roslyn, NY
The Davenport Club, New Rochelle
The Pelham Split Rock Golf Club
The Glen Island Harbour Club, New Rochelle, NY
Mandarin Oriental, Manhattan
Union Theological Seminary, Manhattan
The Central Park Boathouse, Manhattan
The North Ritz Club, Syosset, NY
The Vineyard Estate Caterers, Aquebogue, NY
The Woodbury Country Club, Woodbury, NY

We shall learn a few new songs for our brides this fall such as these beautiful ballads/songs:
I Dont Want to Miss a Thing, Aerosmith
I'll Be by Ed McBain
I've Just Seen a Face by the Beatles

My personal itenerary as the Arstistic Director also includes a few "outside" endeavors such as:
Rehearsing with our all New String Trio for Concerts
Rehearsing with our cellist Robert towards a performance with orchestra
for the Beethoven Triple Concerto: Violin, Cello and Piano
Practicing in all my free time for my Christmas recording (shall send as a gift to everyone I know) of "Caprice 24" by Paganini

That's it for now..

Thanks for reading!
Natalie
The Inn at New Hyde Park

Capriccio Ensemble Happy Spring!

2009-05-19T11:45:00.000-07:00

Hi

We are new here and just started to BLOG!

We've had a busy spring and are looking forward to the great live events we have on our schedule at the end of May and to all of the beautiful weddings we are to perform at in
June.

Of note:
Rachel's wedding on June 6th at The Foundry of LIC where we shall perform "Never Tear us Apart" for her entrance. It's a cool song we're learning by the INXS. It does have a great sound as a violin solo and there will be the accompaniment of 3 other strings as in a full string quartet. ..looking forward to this one! The Recessional music will be "You Shook Me" by AC/DC. :)

Lucy's wedding on June 27th at Harvest on Hudson. Our String Trio will add a bit of theater and "sweetening" to "I've Got You Babe" her first dance song!

More to come.....
Natalie