Maple Rose Strings

What are some of our favourite events?

It's yours of course!! Although we did enjoy walking through a forest to get to the enchanting ceremony location this summer and we really loved our trip to Crete for a wedding weekend extravaganza.. Yamas! We even became the karaoke soundtrack for a wedding party with all the guests choosing songs and singing along! While not a party per se.... we did have loads of fun joining the punk band The Damned for a vampire extravaganza this Oct at the Palladium. It was pretty rockin'!

What's our USP?

We have more than one... Our approach to your event is second to none. Whatever you are looking for we will try our hardest to make it come to fruition! Want a sax with our string quartet? DJ and violin? No problem! Jazz, pop or opera singer with our string players? You got it! Need an orchestra? We can do that too! We can dress for a black tie event or if you want us to come in jeans for a festival style event (it's happened before!), we'll style ourselves to your theme. As an added bonus if you're getting married, we also come bearing gifts! A little keepsake from us to you when you look back at your special day.

What are our top tips when looking for musicians at your event?

Remember that we are highly skilled and experienced in our field! If you're unsure of anything, just ask! There are no wrong questions when it comes to music. Our director Gillian has been organising music for events since she was 14 so is able to guide you through the process of booking and choosing your playlist. Because of our experience and skill set (decades of practice, degrees etc) we do charge a fee to match. As well as our performance for you, it covers rehearsal time, procuring the music, instrument upkeep and equipment to make sure we sound our best for your event. When looking through repertoire lists, if you don't see a song you were hoping for, ask if the group has it. Some groups leave off some of their repertoire to keep their website tidy. More often than not, we are happy and able to arrange the music if it's not on the list. At Maple Rose, our lovely cellist is also a talented arranger and can translate most songs (some songs just don't work) into a fabulous work for strings!

What makes a happy musician at MRS?

We love what we do so providing the soundtrack to your event always puts a smile on our face! Making our clients happy of course! We strive to sound and look great for your event to create an atmosphere so your guests have an amazing time. Interacting with your guests is great! We love taking requests and do enjoy some of the more interesting enquiries while we're at your event.

What else do you do?

All of the MRS musicians have studied at top music conservatories and universities and have busy freelance careers. As well as events, we teach the next generation of musicians, tour with bands, perform in orchestras around Europe and perform on cruise ships. We've also performed with contestants on XFactor and BGT, and Strictly. You can find us with various bands and artists during festival season at Boomtown, Glastonbury, Latitude, Isle of Wight and more. Director, Gillian is also setting up a non profit multi disciplinary arts company to create performance pieces to explore and open dialogue on social issues. She's also a long standing volunteer at Great Ormond Street Hospital.