Info for Guitarists

I wanted to write a word of encouragement for you fortunate souls who get asked to play at a wedding for a friend or family member.

This is indeed an honor, of course. Some even make a living at it. For the rest of us, it is terrifying to think that you alone could be the cause of the most hideous wedding music for someone's "once in a lifetime" day. No pressure there!! An added bonus is you being publicly mocked on one of those Funniest Videos shows that so commonly highlight wedding blunders. And you may put down the guitar forever.

After the shock wears off from being asked, "Can you play 'Trumpet Voluntary' for my friend's wedding?" you begin to wonder whether or not to take up the challenge, and become a part of helping their wedding to actually be spectacular.

I am hoping the Acoustic Wedding recordings may bring some hope. Listen to the selections and play along. Try the keys used for each song, which were chosen for sonic quality and playability. Acoustic Wedding was primarily recorded using two passes - a foundational layer and a melody layer. Unless you've been classically trained (I was not) you may achieve a better result playing these songs in duet with a friend. I used completely standard guitar tunings when playing the songs (E B G D A E). I have completed sheet music for all selections, which includes guitar chords and guitar tabs for every song. Get Acoustic Wedding guitar sheet music here. The arrangements match the CD, so you can play along with the CD. Keep playing! Drop me a line and let me know how it's going.

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Mark's Gear List

Mark's guitar work on Acoustic Wedding is inspired by Will Ackerman,  John Michael Talbot, Michael Hedges, and Phil Keaggy.