Kirsten & Jonathan, 05.04.13 @ Willows Lodge

Post-ceremony

We had a wonderful time at Jonathan and Kirsten’s wedding on Saturday. It was at the lovely Willows Lodgein Woodinville, one of the must beautiful venues around. The staff at Willows are all real pros and they take care of the couples and the vendors alike. It was a late-afternoon ceremony and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect…70 degrees and not a cloud in the sky! Jonathan and Kirsten hired a bagpiper for the ceremony music, which lent it a real cool and personal vibe. After he finished up we played for cocktails, dinner and the special dances. They picked “The Nearness of You” for their first dance, which is always one of my favorite tunes to play. For the mother/groom dance they asked for “What A Wonderful World”, and for the father/daughter dance they picked “Till There Was You”, which was actually the first dance at the very first wedding I ever played back in 2002 for my friends Denise and Bret! I don’t think we’ve been asked to play it since, so it was a real treat.

Borage!

The food was wonderful as usual, with a huge buffet spread and a raspberry lemon cake for dessert. Again, I can’t overstate how great a venue Willows Lodge is. Not only do they do everything right, but on their grounds is the garden for the Herb Farm, one of the country’s most famous restaurants, which is right across the street. As you sip your cocktail you can walk between rows of chard, thyme, rhubarb, rosemary and more, and even check out their truffling pig, Borage! If you’re in the market, give Jenn a call and tell her I sent you!

We had the pleasure of working with photographer Kristi Lloyd for the first time. I’ve heard Kristi’s name for years as one of the top photogs in Seattle and it was great to get to know her and her husband a little bit. I hope to have some of their pictures to share in this post soon.

All-in-all it was a beautiful night, and a great way to kick off the 2013 wedding season! Here’s a couple more shots I took, one of bassist extraordinaire Nate Omdal, and one as I was leaving the grounds.

Nate doing his thing!
Night falls on Woodinville

Come See The Jason Parker Quartet at “Get Hitched, Give Hope”!

Once again this year, The Jason Parker Quartet is the only live music featured at the best wedding show in Seattle, Get Hitched, Give Hope, on Thursday, October 27th! If you are planning your wedding this is the show you MUST attend! You’ll be able to plan your entire wedding in one night, meet all the vendors you’d want to use, and support a great cause. And if you’ve been wanted to see us perform live before making your decision on music, here’s your chance!

In addition to meeting all the most amazing wedding professionals in the area, you’ll be able to bid on some truly fabulous auction items throughout the night, and 100% of the proceeds benefit The Dream Foundation, the first national wish granting organization for adults suffering life-threatening illness. The mission of the Dream Foundation is to enhance the quality of life for individuals and their families who are battling life-threatening illness. The Dream Foundation helps adults find peace and closure with the realization of a final wish.

We’re proud to support this worthwhile cause and can’t wait to see everyone decked out in their finery. If you make it, be sure to stop by and say hi!

Your Chance To Catch the JPQ Live!

Feb. 21st, 3-4pm
If you’ve been considering having the Jason Parker Quartet play at your wedding, here’s a chance for you to see us perform live in a beautiful venue. Once you see and hear us play, I’m certain you’ll want to book us for your big day!

We’ll be playing at the Experience Music Project in the gorgeous Sky Church. If you haven’t been there before, this is one of the most stunning venues in the Seattle area. You can even book it for your wedding if you are looking for a place that will blow your guests away!

We’ll play from 3-4pm and it’s free and all-ages. In honor of Black History Month we’ll be paying tribute to some of the great African-American composers in jazz history.

If you make it out, be sure to stop and say hello after the show!

Get Hitched, Give Hope Wedding Show This Thursday!

I’m so excited that The Jason Parker Quartet will make our 3rd appearance at the best wedding show in Seattle, Get Hitched, Give Hope, this Thursday! If you are planning your wedding this is the show you MUST attend! You’ll be able to plan your entire wedding in one night, meet all the vendors you’d want to use, and support a great cause.

In addition to meeting all the most amazing wedding professionals in the area, you’ll be able to bid on some amazing auction items throughout the night, and 100% of the proceeds benefit The Making Memories Foundation, a wonderful organization that grants breast cancer patients’ wishes.

Here is a very cool preview of the auction catalog:

And here is a spiffy video preview of the event, complete with music from the JPQ!

We’ll be playing live from 6:30-8:00pm, so stop by and say hi! We’re also auctioning off a free hour of music for someone’s wedding reception…it could be yours!

Here’s the details:

What: Get Hitched, Give Hope
Where: Four Seasons, Seattle
When: Thursday, October 28th, 6:00pm sharp!
Why: To grant wishes to stage 4 breast cancer patients for whom the cure can’t come soon enough.
Tickets: Purchase tickets here

Hope to see you there!

Lisa & David, July 25 @ Arctic Club Hotel

IMG_1264I love to play in the Northern Lights Dome Room at the Arctic Club Hotel in downtown Seattle. It’s one of the most magnificent and classy rooms in town and the staff is second-to-none. They treated us right Sunday at Lisa & David’s beautiful wedding.

Lisa & David and a traditional but not stuffy Jewish wedding ceremony, which gave us an opportunity to play our arrangements of “Hevenu Shalom Aleichem” and “Etz Chaim”, always a treat. And once the reception was in full swing and we busted out a rousing version of “Hava Nagila” the dance floor was packed and jubilant!

We also had the honor of being joined by our dear friend Isabella DuGraf. Bella is a vocalist extraordinaire who has been studying at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and has flown back to Seattle for the summer to join us for a few weddings. Everytime I get to play with her she gets better and better, and she fits in with the band beautifully.

Lisa was the center of attention in her gorgeous gown and huge smile all night long! However, her father’s toast was hilarious and he almost wouldn’t give up the microphone! Once he did, he hit the dance floor with reckless abandon! So nice to see a family truly enjoying the moment. We are privileged to spend these precious moments with people like Lisa, Dave and their family and friends.

Monday David sent me this nice note: “We both enjoyed you and the band very much on our big day. It couldn’t have been better.”