Archives for posts with tag: Popped String
Americana and Australian tourism hits
We've been arranging some recent Americana hits for string quartet, and their soft, sentimental feel is an excellent fit for string ensembles. First, we return to the Twilight movie series soundtrack with "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" by Iron and Wine. This song gives strings the chance to play a gentle, lilting, country-western waltz. Then, we return to Popped String favorite Jason Mraz for his song "I Won't Give Up." This is an excellent addition to the "I'm Yours" string quartet and string trio arrangements that have been so popular for weddings. Finally, we stay close to home with Los Angeles band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros with a string quartet arrangement of their hit "Home." Hopefully, this will be the first in a series of arrangements featuring our local favorites.
And then, what do you call Australian Americana music? Australiana? Hmm. Well, we arranged for string quartet the song chosen for a recent Australian tourism campaign that has become a big hit on its own: "It's Like Love" by Dewayne Everettsmith and Jasmine Beams. To translate this duet of singer/guitarist and violist to string quartet, we pass the vocal and viola melodies between the violin 1, violin 2, and viola parts. This creates a lot of movement and sound variety.
Keep your eyes on this page for more Americana/folk/country-western arrangements, and contact us with your requests.
Tags Americana, Arrangements, Australia, Australian, catalog, Cello, chamber, Chamber Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, country western, Dewayne Everettsmith, Edward Sharpe, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Flightless Bird American Mouth, folk, groom, Home, I Won't Give Up, Iron & Wine, Iron and Wine, It's Like Love, Jasmine Beams, Jason Mraz, movie, Music, pop, Pop Music, Popped String, rock, Rock Music, sheet music, String Quartet, String Trio, Strings, tourism, Twilight, Viola, Violin, waltz, weddings
New romantic quartets
Love isn't always polished. Popped String got the chance to create new string quartet arrangements for two incredibly romantic songs with lyrics that point out that love and romance often involve household chores, confusion, and silliness.
When you're thinking about wedding music, the first movie that probably comes to mind is The Wedding Singer. Adam Sandler's simple, heartfelt, quirky song "I Wanna Grow Old with You" features just soft vocals and acoustic guitar. When we got a request to arrange the song for string quartet, we never expected to unlock soaring counter-melodies and forceful rhythm parts, but that sort of thing just happens sometimes. We're very happy with how the arrangement turned out and are sure you'll love it, too.
In 1999, The Magnetic Fields released a giant concept album called 69 Love Songs that covers all different views on love and relationships. The song "The Book of Love" is about romance without any frills, and it has a beautiful lo-fi sound. Peter Gabriel covered this song a few years later for the movie Shall We Dance and went with a lush string orchestra accompaniment for a completely different take on the music. Honestly, we liked both versions, so the string quartet version is inspired by both—with some unique ideas thrown into the mix.
Popped String Arrangements loves all genres of music, and we think you can express your real emotions in so many different, non-traditional ways. We're excited to get your requests!
Tags 69 Love Songs, Adam Sandler, Arrangements, bride, Bridgerton, catalog, Cello, chamber, Chamber Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, groom, I Wanna Grow Old with You, Love, love songs, Magnetic Fields, movie, Music, Peter Gabriel, pop, Pop Music, Popped String, rock, Rock Music, romance, Shall We Dance, sheet music, String Quartet, Strings, Taylor Swift, The Book of Love, The Wedding Singer, Viola, Violin, weddings
Fab Threes
The requests for Beatles songs keep coming in, and it makes perfect sense. The Beatles loved using stringed instruments in their music and dabbling in all different genres, including baroque and classical. We recently arranged three string trios of popular Fab Four hits.
First, the strings-heavy classic "Eleanor Rigby." The original just featured vocals and a string quartet. This arrangement stays close to the original (with some new surprises) while the violin and viola pass the melody back and forth. (Don't worry, a two-violin trio is also available if you need it.) Then, we have the George Harrison classic "Here Comes the Sun." This light and airy classic has a lot of beautiful harmonies built into it and translates so well to strings. Finally, we have what is listed as one of the most covered songs of all time, Paul McCartney's "Yesterday." The original is so simple and sweet, so we thought the best way to translate the song into string trio form was to add just the right amount of new moving parts and harmonies in the accompaniment parts. Especially in the cello line, some delicate arpeggios complexity without getting in the way of the main melody.
Let us know your requests for Beatles music and other classics!
Tags Arrangements, baroque, catalog, Cello, classic rock, Classical Music, Eleanor Rigby, George Harrison, Here Comes the Sun, Music, Paul McCartney, pop, Pop Music, Popped String, rock, Rock Music, sheet music, String Quartet, String Trio, Strings, The Beatles, Viola, Violin, Yesterday
Star Wars quartets
February 8, 2013 //
Want a Star Wars-themed wedding ceremony? You're in luck, because we've just put the finishing touches on string quartet arrangements of "Imperial March" from The Empire Strikes Back and the Star Wars opening titles music suite. For the true fan, these are complex arrangements inspired by the original scores, not just simple arrangements of the main melodies. And you probably don't have to twist our arms too hard to convince us to arrange the Ewok Celebration Song. Yubnub!
Contact us to find out more!
Tags A New Hope, Arrangements, bride, celebration song, Cello, chamber, Chamber Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, Darth Vader, Episode IV, ewok, groom, Imperial March, John Williams, movie, Music, opening credits, opening titles, Popped String, Return of the Jedi, score, sheet music, soundtrack, Star Wars, String Quartet, Strings, The Empire Strikes Back, Viola, Violin, weddings, yubnub
It's holiday time, but Popped String is here for you through the end of the year. Send us an email with your requests, and we'll get back to you as quickly as possible. We've been busy with new arrangements for string quartet: "Everlong" by Foo Fighters, "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol, and "Only Time" by Enya, but we're always available to get to your requests.
We also love arranging classical music, so if you're having a hard time finding a quartet or small chamber group arrangement for a favorite piano piece, opera aria or full symphonic piece, we can help you get the exact arrangement you need.
Tags Arrangements, Cello, chamber, Chamber Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, Chasing Cars, Classical Music, Enya, Everlong, Foo Fighters, Music, offers, Only Time, pop, Pop Music, Popped String, rock, Rock Music, sheet music, Snow Patrol, String Quartet, String Trio, Strings, Viola, Violin
Set Fire to the Rain
We've been looking forward to arranging some music by Adele, and we finally got our chance this week with a request for the sultry "Set Fire to the Rain" for string quartet. This is a song that's perfect for bringing out the rich, smooth tones of string instruments and definitely won't be the last Adele song we arrange.
The week ended with a change of pace from Adele's ballad as we completed a string quartet arrangement of alt rock/pop punk "Mr. Brightside" by The Killers.
We're busy bees at Popped String, but we are ready for your requests at any time. Email us today!
Tags Adele, alt, alternative, Arrangements, bride, Cello, groom, Mr. Brightside, Music, pop, Pop Music, Popped String, punk, R&B, rock, Rock Music, Set Fire to the Rain, sheet music, soul, String Quartet, Strings, The Killers, Viola, Violin, weddings
A Thousand Years and more
November 4, 2012 //
Perhaps it's because the final Twilight movie is coming out soon and everyone's excited, but Christina Perri's "A Thousand Years" from Breaking Dawn – Part 1 has been incredibly popular lately. We're more than happy about this, because it's a beautiful song that works well as an instrumental. We've added a string quartet version and a flute, violin, cello trio version to the string trio version we arranged before.
We also continue to add to our string quartet selections, arranging "Starlight" by Muse, "Wonderwall" by Oasis, "You Found Me" by The Fray, and "Like a Child Again" by The Mission UK. There's no end to creative ideas for wedding music, and we're excited to hear your ideas.
Tags "A Thousand Years", Arrangements, Breaking Dawn, bride, catalog, Cello, chamber, Chamber Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, Christina Perri, Classical Music, flute, Like a Child Again, Muse, Music, Oasis, Pop Music, Popped String, Rock Music, sheet music, Starlight, String Quartet, String Trio, Strings, The Fray, The Mission, The Mission UK, Twilight, Viola, Violin, weddings, Wonder Wall, Wonderwall, You Found Me