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We're just looking for some Tush  

It's our craziest time of the year! Summer for Sunshine Symphony involves playing tons of community events, festivals, and weddings in the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia areas. This summer is no exception! We've managed to cram another special event into our schedule this week.

Tonight, we head to Toll Man Joe's bar in South Philadelphia to compete in the WMGK House Band competition. If you're not familiar with WMGK, it's a classic rock radio station out of Philadelphia. Many of the DJs have been on the air for multiple decades. In fact, morning show host John DeBella was one of the DJs I listened to that inspired me to get into radio. In any case - this is huge and legendary for me personally, that we could be the house band for a radio station I've been listening to for a long time. 

We are required to play a 25-minute set of classic rock tunes, and one of them must be Tush, the 70s song by ZZ Top. We don't play a whole lot of blues tunes (we tend toward pop and 80s stuff), but boy, was this song fun to learn (and easy - it's only 2 minutes long!).  We were racking our brains trying to think of ways to make our version accurate but different, and we decided to play up Ricky's experience on blues harmonica. He does a killer solo that fits right into the feel of the song.

Listen to our version from rehearsal and let us know what you think! 

UPDATE: Well, we didn't win the semi-final round, but put on a performance to be proud of. Congrats to the guys in The Mad Trio, who move on to the finals. They were a 3-piece rock group that made a lot of noise! Also, fun to see Raised on Radio, and Retro 45. Some killer pipes and musicianship among all the bands.

Hot Time, Summer in the City 

Hi Symphomaniacs - we can't believe Musikfest has come and gone, with another performance in the books. Record heat, thunderstorms and lightning WOULD have cancelled our show if we were outside this year - we're thankful that our performance in Musikfest Cafe went on as planned to a full house!

Our friend and photographer Kenn Miller took some awesome shots of our performance, which I'm proud to share with you here.


The month of August is crazy busy with three weddings and several other shows, including our debut at West Deptford, NJ's RiverWinds summer concert series.

Hope you're staying cool! Thanks for coming out to our shows this summer!

Fall Weddings are Here! 

We had such a great experience at Musikfest. Did you see our write-ups here and here? We had such a great time on stage and backstage. 

Sunshine Symphony rocked Rachel & Greg's receptionWe kicked off our fall wedding season with Rachel and Greg's wedding on August 29th in Philadelphia at the Sheraton University City. The staff down there was 
fabulous, and they decorated the hotel ballroom beautifully and totally transformed it!

Then, just this past weekend, on September 26th, we were thrilled to participate in Beki & Jake's wedding at The Country Garden in Lehigh Township. Jake's Mom did an amazing job decorating the facility, and Beki had friends make her cake (which was lovely and delicious), plus homemade pie and lots of delicious treats. We have three more weddings coming up in the next two weeks and we've got several weddings booked for 2016 already!

Rachel & Greg's Wedding

Beki & Jake's Cake

Beki & Jake's Cake

Musikfest is THIS WEEK! 


Hard to believe it's already August. We are getting ready for our TWO Musikfest shows this week, and we'll have a special tribute to Musikfest artists at both performances.

Here are our shows:

THURSDAY, AUGUST 6th - 5 p.m. - Preview Night at Levitt Pavilion at Steel Stacks on the Southside of Bethlehem.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 7th - 7:30 p.m. - Opening Night of Musikfest at Levitt Pavilion Steel Stacks on the Southside of Bethlehem.

We'll have our brand new t-shirts for sale at the 'Fest as well!

Thanks to Matt Smith of the Express Times, who mentioned our shows at the 'Fest in a little article about new music.

Endless Summer Nights! 

We've had an exciting month here in the 'Symphony, with news about two summertime shows that made us practically radiate happiness. 

Tunes at Twilight, in our humble opinion, is one of the best events that the Downtown Bethlehem Association hosts every year.  Set up in the beautiful and shaded Sun Inn Courtyard in Downtown Bethlehem, this easily accessible small park seats hundreds, and makes for a lively place for a free concert. Surrounded by Bethlehem's downtown restaurants, breweries, wineries and more, there are great places to dine before-hand or afterwards, or, enjoy food and drink from the Tunes Bar, which serves wine and beer, often regional offerings.  They've extended the concert series this year through July, which gives you more chances to enjoy a warm summer evening.  Sunshine Symphony will be there on July 2nd. We're looking forward to our 2nd year at this event.


Musikfest is Bethlehem's signature musical event, and it's been going on for 30 years now! Imagine an entire town turned into outdoor music venues for free concerts of all genres!  Plus, the event features every portable culinary delight you can think of. Pickle on a stick? Yep. Barbecued meat skewer? Yes. Vegan taco? Sure. Totally my idea of heaven. The event brings thousands of visitors to town (and the boost to the local economy is noticeable), but it also makes me personally happy that I live in a place that so celebrates music.  Come see us at Levitt Pavilion on the South Side of Bethlehem (right in front of Steelstacks), the opening night of Muskiest, Friday, August 7th at 7:30.

Check our schedule for ALL of our upcoming shows.

See you out and about this summer!
Peace, Love & Rock n' Roll,

Christine Bainbridge, Sunshine Symphony

Lehigh Valley Music Awards - we're nominated! 

This weekend is the musical community's biggest event in the Lehigh Valley - the Lehigh Valley Music Awards happen on Sunday, March 8th at ArtsQuest.  Sunshine Symphony is thrilled to be nominated by our peers in the music industry as "Outstanding New Band" this year (our second together).

We have been thankful to have performed all over the area in the past year, from "Tunes at Twilight" to Forks Township's Summer Concert series, to Fullerton Carnival, and happy that people have noticed the passion we put into our performances, the time we've spent rehearsing and re-rehearsing, and the variety of the music we play, like our tongue-in-cheek humor as you listen to our version of "Raise Your Glass" that bursts suddenly into the chorus of "Let it Go" from Frozen.

We are also thankful to be a part of the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia music scenes, and have such a variety of venues in which to perform. To be part of a community that recognizes the arts and its talented musicians is a blessing!

Read about some of the other industry nominees for awards here in this article by Dustin Schoof:
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/music/index.ssf/2015/03/lehigh_valley_music_awards_16_2.html#incart_2box_entertainment_index.ssf

You CAN afford a wedding band! 


We had a great time on Sunday meeting tons of brides and couples at Green Pond Country Club's Summer Bridal Bash. One thing we heard a LOT when we told people we were a wedding band, was "I've thought about having a band but didn't think I could afford it." We are here to tell you, "YES! YOU CAN!" Sunshine Symphony's rates are designed to be competitive with the price of a DJ, and fair.

We charge what we feel is fair, based on the amount of time it will take to prepare (in advance, via planning sessions, conference calls, song lists, etc), and then perform, including set up and tear down of our equipment. Performing at a wedding, 99% of the time, requires that we bring all of our equipment, and in some cases, multiple set ups for a ceremony or cocktail hour that is in a different location than the reception. Sunshine Symphony is not a bargain basement band, but we're a fairly priced entertainment option, and we strive to be comparable and competitive with DJ rates, while providing so much more excitement and energy.  Part of our services also includes party hosting, which means we'll make all the introductions and announcements to keep everything flowing and to let you know what's happening next.

A nice bonus for you? We care about our wedding couples. Yes, you're our clients, but we'll make time for you. We're spending one of your most important days with you, and we know that getting married is incredibly stressful for most people.  We do everything we can to make it less stressful, and even fun for you! We want to accommodate you and your ideas and make your reception memorable and uniquely "you."

One thing has consistently happened at the end of each and every wedding we've played: the guests crowd onto the dance floor, and when we say our final thank yous, they unanimously chant "ONE MORE SONG!" We're not kidding when we say this happens every time. We've all been to our share of weddings with DJs, and while great, we've never seen this same phenomenon happen. Ever.

If you even had a passing thought about having live entertainment at your wedding, please give us a call. We're flexible, experienced, professional, talented and honest, and we're happy to answer your questions.

Peace, Love & Rock n Roll,
Christine Bainbridge, Sunshine Symphony

Summer Weddings! 


Congratulations to Lauren and Adam, whose wedding we played last weekend at Riverview Country Club.  What a beautiful location! Riverview is definitely a scenic location for a wedding ceremony and reception.  As we performed at the ceremony, and reception, we got an up-close glimpse at all the details that make Riverview a great location for both ceremonies and receptions.

Riverview's reception location is called "Villa on the Green" - it's a round room with windows all around overlooking the golf course, which is beautiful landscaped. As soon as you walk in, you see a huge, dramatic stone fireplace goes perfectly with the natural wood beams inside and view of the rolling hills of the course.  Lauren's theme of navy blue and sunflower gold perfectly accented the space and lent a summery look to the room.

The ceremony location is behind Villa on the Green. As you can see in the picture above, a long wooden boardwalk with past the pond leads to a rustic wooden gazebo. A natural hill overlooks the gazebo, so all of your wedding guests will have a great view of the proceedings. We set up at the end of the boardwalk, where Ricky and I performed acoustic songs while the guests were being seated, and then, once the bridal party was ready, started playing Sara Bareilles's song "I Choose You."

One advantage to having professional musicians perform at your wedding is our ability to customize your entrance song "on the fly." Since Riverview's boardwalk aisle is quite long, if we had played a recorded version of "I Choose You," we would have been three whole minutes short by the time Lauren got to the end of the aisle. So, we added an instrumental break, and two extra choruses to make sure that as soon as Lauren set foot at the altar, the song concluded - but she still got to hear a good bit of her selected song.  We received one of the nicest compliments ever, when Lauren and Adam told us afterwards that they felt like they were in a movie, with the way the music was perfectly timed.

We then took care of introducing Lauren and Adam's bridal party and getting the reception going inside the beautiful Villa on the Green.  The benefit of having a live band is we were able to introduce the bridal party and then Lauren and Adam in between choruses of "Best Day of My Life," by American Authors.  We then performed the couple's first dance to Blake Shelton's song "God Gave Me You," a Father/Daughter dance to "My Wish" by Rascal Flatts, and Adam and his Mom danced to "100 Years" by Five for Fighting, all performed live by Sunshine Symphony.

At the end of the night, after getting the whole room onto the dance floor with "Shout", and hearing everyone singing along to "Don't Stop Believing", we received the ultimate compliment from our couple: "That was EXACTLY what we wanted!" Thanks again to Lauren and Adam for choosing Sunshine Symphony for your wedding. We always aim to deliver total satisfaction!

We'll be appearing at the Summer Engagement Bash Bridal Show on July 13th from 12-3. If you're thinking about a band at your wedding, stop by and see us - we'll be there to answer questions and show you some footage from shows and weddings we've performed at. Get free tickets (free for brides, $5 for guests) here:
http://bridalexpopa.ticketleap.com/pennsylvania-bridal-expo-presents-a-summer-engagement-bash-at-g/
 

How We Made a Pop-Punk Song into a First Dance  


We had a great time at Evan and Ciara's wedding last night at The Eastonian (Kunkle Drive in Easton/Palmer Township, PA).  It's really enjoyable meeting couples getting married and hearing their thoughts on their music for their big day - it's such a huge part of people's memories that we realize the importance of our job when we're hired for a wedding.

Typically, we'll learn songs for the couple if we don't already know their "first dance" songs, or learn other songs that the couple really wants to hear during their reception.

Ricky's going to kill me for mentioning it, but he's a huge fan of Wilson Phillips. As am I - I totally wore out my cassette.  Their song "Hold On" recently came back into the public's collective consciousness after the song was featured in the hit movie, "Bridesmaids." When Ciara mentioned she's a huge fan of the movie and wanted us to learn "Hold On" for their reception,  we were openly excited. Harmonies! That's one of our specialties.

In addition to that, Evan and Ciara were fans of the Ataris, a pop-punk band known for their cover of the Don Henley song "Boys of Summer" a few years back. They asked for us to put together an acoustic version of the song "I.O.U. One Galaxy." Normally, it's a faster-paced rock tune. Ricky and I worked out an arrangement where we alternated lines and added harmonies to make a slow-danceable song for Evan and Ciara's first dance.  We knew we hit the mark when we saw the two dancing, totally absorbed and enjoying the moment.  That's probably our favorite part of being a wedding band - helping to create the special moments that people remember forever.

At the bride and groom's request, we'll record a version in the studio that they can keep forever to remember the moment (and our arrangement). That's a unique service that we can offer to our wedding clients that doesn't cost a dime  - we enjoy the creative process and the challenge of arranging a song to capture our brides' and grooms' visions. 

Have a wedding coming up? Have some creative requests or dreams for your special event? Contact us. We can help make those dreams a musical reality.

Peace, Love & Rock 'n Roll,
Christine

You've Got Class! 

Thanks to Pius X Class of 1974 and Dunmore HS Class of 1989 who just booked Sunshine Symphony for their class reunions!  We hope this is a trend that's continuing.  

We love the idea of bringing a live band to a reunion - there's no better icebreaker than getting everyone on the dance floor with a nostalgic song from your high school years. We always like to go the extra mile when it comes to keeping our clients happy, and we enjoy learning new songs to enhance the event. One of the most fun parts of our job is looking at the Billboard charts for the top hits of that year, and deciding which ones we think will go over well with our audience.

Cara booked us for her class's 25th high school reunion after seeing us perform at Bar Louie in Wilkes Barre. She really enjoyed our variety of music.  1989 was the year of power ballads, including songs from hair bands like Skid Row, and pop/rock bands like Bon Jovi and Poison. Since we grew up loving late 80s music, we're not too proud to admit we already know some of the big hits of 1989, like "When I See You Smile" (Bad English) and "Lost in Your Eyes" (Debbie Gibson). We may have to break a few of those out for slow dances at the reunion.

The Sunshine Symphony duo of Ricky Bell and Ian Frey will be playing the Pius X Class of 1974 reunion at Northampton Country Club. Great songs abounded in 1974 as well - an era that included disco, soft rock and plain old rock n roll! Top hits in 1974 included "Jungle Boogie" by Kool and the Gang, "The Joker" by the Steve Miller Band and "Sunshine on my Shoulders" by John Denver.  

Interestingly enough, there was one song that was a Top 100 hit in BOTH 1974 and 1989, can you guess what it was?
"Rock On' - recorded by David Essex in 1974 and Michael Damien in 1989. So if we learn that one song, we're covered at both reunions!

If you're planning a party, wedding, or class reunion, consider live entertainment to make it a party that no one will ever forget!  Ask Sunshine Symphony about performance options - we can perform as a full band, as a duo or a trio to deliver live music at an affordable price.