  Friend,• What Carolyn Is Up To: Tis The Season ~ Wedding Planning • Upcoming Events: Distinguished Speaker Series With Steve Lopez • Feature Article: 5 Most Important Things to Think About When Planning Your Special Day • About Carolyn: Meet The Artist • Carolyn Recommends: The 5 Most Popular Wedding Songs Please add "carolyn@pacificharps.com " to your white list or address book in your e-mail program, so that you have no trouble receiving future issues!  Tis The Season ~ Wedding Planning  Busy, busy, busy! Spring is the most popular time for wedding planning, since many weddings take place in the late summer or early fall, and it seems the phone has been ringing off the hook for music! The harp is a fantastic addition to any wedding, and my handy month-to-month calendar has been a lifesaver (as always!) in keeping everyone's dates straight during this crazy time. Remember to think ahead about the details of your day, and book your music in advance! Performance At The Distinguished Speaker Series With Steve Lopez  On April 5th, Carolyn will be playing again at Pasadena's Distinuished Speaker Series! This tradition began in 1997 so that audiences could have opportunity to experience and learn from remarkable individuals who have changed the world and shaped our lives, and this month the speaker is Steve Lopez, the man behind the movie "The Soloist." The event begins at 8pm, and you can find more information including ticket prices at www.speakersla.com. About Steve Lopez: This award-winning columnist joined the staff of the Los Angeles Times in May 2001 after four years at Time Inc., where he wrote for Time, Sports Illustrated, Life and Entertainment Weekly. Prior to this, he was a columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer, the San Jose Mercury News and the Oakland Tribune. His work has won him numerous national journalism awards. His best-seller, The Soloist: A Lost Dream, An Unlikely Friendship, And the Redemptive Power of Music about his four-year odyssey with homeless musician, Nathaniel Ayers, became a hit movie and catapulted Lopez to the national stage. See more at www.speakersla.com .  5 Most Important Things to Think About When Planning Your Special Day  1. Have the wedding that you want to have. . . You and your fiancé should be the two most influential people planning your wedding. Mom, Dad and the future In-laws will all want to play a part in this special day, but ultimately it is your wedding and your memory. If you and your fiancé have a definite vision for time of year, venue or theme, then by all means follow your hearts. 2. The early bird gets the worm. . . This one is easy, the earlier you begin the planning process, the more likely you are to secure your preferred vendors. Katie, a June bride, warns of the dangers of not starting early enough, "My sister got married in October and didn't start planning until late July, early August, and she was fine. However, I waited until around February…I had a lot of problems with booking the florist and photographer that I wanted. I also ended up spending a lot more than what I was planning on spending." After I had spoken with Katie for this article, her wedding had to be postponed indefinitely, due to not being able to secure appropriate venues in time for her big day. She now has to kiss thousands of dollars in non-refundable deposits goodbye! It is not unusual for photographers, reception venues and churches to book clients up to two years in advance. So if you have always dreamed of getting married at Heinz Chapel, you had better be the early bird, or you may be disappointed. 3. Organize, organize, organize. . . Keeping yourself organized while planning your wedding is one of the easiest things that you can do to keep your sanity! Make detailed notes on all conversations that you have with vendors. Have a binder or individual folders to keep all important documentation together in one place, such as signed contracts and informational paperwork. 4. Outsource when you can. . .Try not to do it all yourself. Will you really have time, three days before the wedding, to make forty, fresh flower centerpieces? Or bake and decorate you own wedding cake the day before the ceremony? Please, who would want to! With the costs of a wedding increasing, the Do-It-Yourself bride is here to stay. But be reasonable about what you can and cannot do on your own. If there are D.I Y. projects that can be done today…do them today! The more projects you can complete far in advance of the big day, the better.5. Be done by the big day. . . Many brides try to cram in last minute wedding chores the day of the event. This is not the time to be printing seating charts or running to the store for a shiny hair accent. If you can, try to leave this day as open as possible. "Our wedding went really well but I think that it was because I was very well organized." says Darlene, a recent newlywed. "This way I could go to bed the night before and sleep, rather than lay awake thinking about what I needed to do. I did as much as I could on Wednesday and Thursday because Friday and Saturday were busy…I was relatively stress free on my wedding day." Aaaahhh, stress free, that is the goal. Having things wrapped up by the day of the event will allow you to indulge a bit, if your budget allows. Have your hair and makeup done professionally. Get together for a light breakfast with your bridesmaids. You will want to be relaxed, enjoy everyone's company and experience all of the wonderful emotions of the day. If there are last minute snafus that need handling, designate a go-to person. They will be able to help Aunt Lois scuff the soles of her new shoes, or run back to the house for the missing ring pillow, without bothering you.Your wedding day, and the days leading up to it, should be some of the happiest of your life. Things may go wrong, people may disappoint you and everything may not be perfect, but that is OK. Recently, I was collecting wedding photos of my parents and grandparents. When I asked my mother for a wedding picture of her parents, she said that there weren't any. My grandparents had gotten married during the Depression, and no one could afford the luxury of a camera. There was not a single picture to commemorate the backyard event. As I watch brides fuss and fret over the planning of their weddings, I think of my grandparents' decades long marriage and happy life together. Even though there was not one photograph of the bride and groom, it all turned out more than fine in the end. *Many thanks to Pamela Jeschonek at http://www.pittsburghwedding.com/planning/articles/1249/5/Ten-Things-You-Need-to-Know-When-Planning-Your-Wedding/Page5.html   Australian harpist Carolyn Sykes has been performing in Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States for the past 30 years. She came to Los Angeles fifteen years ago to study for her Masters Degree at the California Institute of the Arts. Since then she has established her private teaching and performing studio Pacific Harps, teaching, supplying harps and performing in orchestras, on concert stages and for special events, both locally and abroad. Carolyn plays solo, as well as with other instruments such as flute, bass, violin and string ensembles and vocalists. Visit Carolyn's website at www.pacificharps.com for more information on lessons and harps, her harp retreat in Mexico, and much more!  The 5 Most Popular Wedding Songs  The harp creates an atmosphere of romance, timelessness, and beauty wherever it is played - and there are a few songs we get requests for more than any others. The top five songs of this year are...1. Pachelbel's Canon in D 2. All I Ask Of You 3. The Prayer 4. The Bridal March 5. Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring @ Copyright Pacific Harps |
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The trip to Australia is 18 hours long - and worth every one! As I'm sure many of you have read, there have been major floods all across much of the country, yet thankfully I and my family were fortunate to be safe from them. I travelled back to Melbourne at the start of the year and stayed for three weeks. Kathy and I had a wonderful time visiting my family and going to favorite haunts, seeing friends and going to the theatre. We all went down to the coast for a few days and saw this kukaburra in the bush - so lovely! The sunsets were amazing and the coastline spectacular. I highly recommend this lovely country to a nyone who loves to travel - just be sure and let me know so I can fil you in on the must-see places!
This February 22nd, Carolyn will be playing at Pasadena's Distinuished Speaker Series! This tradition began in 1997 so that audiences could have opportunity to experience and learn from remarkable individuals who have changed the world and shaped our lives, and this month the speaker is Peter Greenberg. The event begins at 8pm, and you can find more information including ticket prices at 
Gone With The Wind
This family business was established in 1910 in Kharkov, Ukraine. It was established by Hovsep Ter-Poghossian Sr. in a modest middle class neighborhood. The business started as a bakery with white bread and baguettes being the main products, but as the business grew rapidly, the bakery portion was added and other baked goods and sweets were served to the community. Now it serves Old Town Pasadena as one of the best little chocolate shops where you can choose from an array of collections or build your own! 
As 2010 draws to a close, we're reflecting back upon what this year has brought us - the challenges, the successes, and the things that have made us grow and will keep us growing into the new year. One of the things that comes to mind in all of this is this very newsletter. Creating and expanding it into a wonderful form of connection with all of you has been so rewarding and inspiring, and we want to thank you for all your great comments, communication and participation in this part of the journey. We wish you all the most fantastic of new years. We'll see you on the other side! 
Coming soon! HarpNotes will be changing to “Harmonies” - the official newsletter of the new agency Music For Events! We are so very excited about this new venture, and watching all the pieces come together has been such an amazing experience. So many different aspects are involved with putting all of this together, and we can’t wait to share it with you! The website will be up and running soon - and you will be the first to see it! Keep an eye out for it at the start of the New Year! 
Australian harpist Carolyn Sykes has been performing in Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States for the past 30 years. She came to Los Angeles fifteen years ago to study for her Masters Degree at the California Institute of the Arts. Since then she has established her private teaching and performing studio Pacific Harps, teaching, supplying harps and performing in orchestras, on concert stages and for special events, both locally and abroad. Carolyn plays solo, as well as with other instruments such as flute, bass, violin and string ensembles and vocalists. 
After much anticipation and dedication, Pacific Harps is now ready to take our next step - expanding under a new name into a full-service music agency for the Los Angeles and surrounding area! Music For Events is a boutique music service that works closely with their clients to create not only the musical vision they imagine for their event, but also to ensure the success of their entire event through our network of event professionals. We are a premier music agency that is also readily equipped to assist our clients with any other event needs they may have. Music For Events website will launch in early December, so keep an eye out for us - we are excited to serve you! 
Gift Shopping At Ten Thousand Villages