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Wedding Guitar at Russets Country House: Jason and Corinne’s Day
Posted on: 12 April 2014
Being asked to play at someone’s wedding is always a pleasure. Being asked to play one of my own compositions as the bride walks down the aisle feels particularly special.
For Jason and Corinne’s wedding on 12 April 2014, Jason chose Waterscape, from my first album, The View, for Corinne’s entrance. He also requested another composition from the same album, Chiemsee, for the signing of the register.
Those choices alone would have made the wedding memorable for me. But there was also a change of venue, an unexpected musical acquaintance and an invitation to become a serial wedding photobomber—which, despite the encouragement, I couldn’t quite bring myself to accept.
A change of plans
When Jason first contacted me, the wedding was due to take place at a hotel in Guildford. Then, in early March, he emailed with a change of venue.
They had been disappointed by their tasting meal and, Jason explained, had subsequently been told that the original venue had gone into administration. With the wedding just over a month away, they had found a new setting: Russets Country House in Chiddingfold.
Of all the challenges involved in organising a wedding, having to change the venue so close to the date must rank fairly highly. It affects much more than the address on the invitation. Suppliers need to know where they are going, arrangements need checking, and the couple have to imagine their day in a different place.
Yet Jason’s message was already enthusiastic about Russets. He described the new venue as beautiful and had spoken to the owners about having me play. The midday ceremony remained in place, and we could turn our attention back to the music.
A country house wedding in Chiddingfold
Russets proved to be a lovely setting. The property had previously served as the clubhouse for the adjoining Chiddingfold Golf Club before being transformed into a private home and wedding venue.
What I remember is a very enjoyable day, with room for the celebration to move between indoors and outside. I played for all three parts: the ceremony, the drinks reception and the wedding breakfast.
After the ceremony, the drinks reception took place outside. Later, we moved into a beautiful room for the meal. That change of setting gave each part of the day its own atmosphere, while the guitar provided continuity between them.
“I would love Waterscape for the walk down the aisle”
Jason’s request was wonderfully straightforward:
“I would love waterscape for the walk down the isle and then whatever you would like for the rest of the day.”
There is something very touching about discovering that a piece you have written has become meaningful enough to someone else that they want it at such an important moment.
Waterscape opens The View, my first album, and Chiemsee, which I played for the signing, appears on the same recording. Both pieces had a life before this wedding, but being chosen for Corinne’s entrance and the signing gave them another association for me.
During the aisle walk, the music accompanies a moment that everyone is watching. There is the practical business of timing and following the entrance, but there is also the pleasure of hearing your own composition become part of somebody else’s story.
The signing offers a different kind of space. With the entrance complete, the guitar can continue while the couple attend to the formalities and the guests listen. It was lovely to have two of my own pieces included in those distinct moments.
The wedding photographer’s unexpected assistant
At some point during the day, I accidentally appeared in a photograph.
Jason found this funny and suggested that I should make a feature of it: the guitarist appearing in every wedding photo, with a little head popping up here and there.
He genuinely thought it would be a good idea. I could see the humour in it, but I was far too embarrassed to carry it through.
So, despite receiving encouragement from the groom himself, I did not spend the rest of the wedding photobombing the guests. My contribution to the photographs remained accidental, and I concentrated on the guitar.
It is a small memory, but it says something about the good humour of the day.
Meeting Darby Todd
Another unexpected pleasure was meeting Darby Todd, who was at the wedding.
Darby turned out to be a fantastic drummer, and our paths have crossed many times since on the London live music scene. His career has included work with musicians such as Devin Townsend and Martin Barre, among many others.
There was a particularly enjoyable connection years later when I went to see Iron Maiden in Athens in May 2026. Darby was behind the drums with their support act, Anthrax. Seeing someone I had met at a Surrey wedding playing on that stage was quite a change of scene.
The music world has a habit of producing encounters like that. You meet someone in one setting, then find yourselves crossing paths repeatedly in quite different circumstances.
Guitar throughout the day
Alongside the two specific ceremony requests, Jason gave me the freedom to choose the rest of the repertoire.
Playing throughout a wedding allows me to respond to those changing surroundings. During the ceremony, the selected pieces have a clear place and purpose. Outside at the drinks reception, the music becomes part of the conversation and movement of the guests. During the wedding breakfast, it sits within the room as people eat, talk and settle into the celebrations.
At Jason and Corinne’s wedding, I enjoyed being part of that whole progression—from Corinne’s entrance to the outdoor reception and then the meal inside.
Looking back, I remember a lovely day that had come together despite a substantial change of plans. I also remember Jason’s humour, meeting Darby, and the particular pleasure of playing Waterscape and Chiemsee because the couple had chosen them.
Thank you, Jason and Corinne, for inviting me to be part of it—and for trusting me with both the music and, briefly, the possibility of appearing in every photograph.