Wichita Wedding Music

Sarah Jane Naillon, Violinist and Violist

Wichita Wedding Music has provided outstanding professional ensembles to the Wichita area and surrounding communities for more than 30 years. Our musicians have performed at thousands of weddings and receptions, averaging over 50 events annually, bringing experience, reliability, and artistry to every celebration.

When we agree to play for your special event, you will have peace of mind knowing that the music will be taken care of for you without further worry, will reflect your taste, will please your guests, and be of the highest professional quality. We can work with your wedding planner or help you with our best tips if you don't have one.

Each event includes a customized playlist, selected by you at no additional charge, ensuring the music reflects your personal taste and enhances every moment of your special day. Our musicians exclusively use iPad Pros and bluetooth pedal page turners, allowing for seamless, organized, and uninterrupted performances throughout your event.

Our pricing is clear and transparent—simply scroll down this page for quick and straightforward booking and pricing information. When you book Wichita Wedding Music, you can have complete peace of mind knowing that your event’s music is professionally handled, thoughtfully planned, and performed at the highest artistic standard. We are happy to collaborate with your wedding planner or, if you do not have one, provide guidance and helpful planning tips based on our extensive experience.

The 40+ members of Wichita Wedding Music have studied at well-known music schools in addition to playing with other professional ensembles including the Wichita Symphony, Wichita Grand Opera, and are full time professional musicians. We use Union musicians from Local #297 whenever possible.

Our organization includes more than 40 professional musicians, all of whom have received formal training at respected music institutions. Many also perform with leading professional ensembles such as the Wichita Symphony Orchestraand Wichita Grand Opera, and all are full-time professional musicians. Whenever possible, we proudly engage American Federation of Musicians Local #297 union musicians.

We have extensive experience performing in a wide variety of settings, from intimate backyard ceremonies to large-scale venues including Prairie Pines, The Barn at Grace Hill, Rustic Timbers, Botanica, Nativity Pines, Union Station in Kansas City, and the Marland Mansion in Ponca City, Oklahoma. We are comfortable and well-prepared to perform in churches, outdoor venues, and event spaces of all types.

Thank you for your interest in String Quartet Music in Wichita, Kansas.

Our ensemble consists of seasoned professional musicians, and our pricing includes customized music planning for your event. Our fee is $795 for any wedding service of up to one hour, including Catholic Mass. For non-wedding events, services are billed by the hour with a one-hour minimum.

All clients receive a complimentary personal planning consultation with our manager, who will guide you through selections from our extensive repertoire and gladly incorporate your musical preferences to create a meaningful and elegant program for your event.

Please note that, as is standard within the professional music industry, musicians do not attend wedding rehearsals.

You may listen to unedited, live performance samples on our Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/WichitaWeddingMusic

www.facebook.com/WichitaWeddingMusic.

To reserve your date, a “Save the Date” deposit of $250 is required and must be submitted to the manager with a signed contract. The remaining balance is due one week prior to the event. We accept checks, Venmo, and PayPal (credit card payments accepted via PayPal). If paying by personal check, please note that the issuing bank must be located within Wichita city limits.

Even with over 30 local, professional and mostly union musicians, our availability is limited, so we encourage you to inquire as early as possible. Travel to locations outside the Wichita area is available for an additional fee.

If you are interested in hiring a soloist, vocalist, or additional musician from our ensemble—either to perform with church musicians or to accommodate your budget—please contact our manager, Mrs. Judy Naillon, for availability and pricing.

For the safety of our musicians, please note that we are not currently sending solo musicians to private homes or rural outdoor events.

We look forward to the opportunity to provide beautiful live music for your special occasion.

Wedding ceremony pricing as listed below:

Here is our price schedule: Our Wedding Service Package for String Quartet is $795 and includes up to 20 minutes of prelude music AND 20 minutes of posted music and includes Catholic Mass.

1 Hour and/or Wedding Service Package	$795
2 Hours	$1295
3 Hours	$1695

During your event, you are welcome to request special music selections, including popular music, a meaningful personal song, or even a unique request such as music from a commercial or cellphone ringtone. Special requests are welcomed at no additional charge.

These selections may be incorporated into a special moment within your wedding service, such as a candle lighting, sand ceremony, or handfasting ceremony, among others.

Following the officiant’s pronouncement and introduction of you as “Mr. and Mrs.”, the ensemble will perform a recessional followed by up to 20 minutes of postlude music, or until guests have exited the ceremony space.

To ensure proper preparation, please submit your finalized music selections in writing at least 30 days prior to your event. While we are unable to accommodate last-minute requests for music outside the standard classical repertoire, we are always happy to assist you in selecting a suitable piece from our extensive classical wedding repertoire for any portion of your service.

Mrs. Judy Naillon

Mrs. Judy Naillon or “ViolinJudy” is a dedicated and enthusiastic independent piano and violin teacher, composer, author of composer biographies for children, method books for violin and piano learning, and she is a professional violinist. Her work consists of her large private music studio in Wichita, KS as well as playing and managing Wichita Wedding Music, and served as a church musician for over 15 years. She received her Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from Wichita State University where she also studied harp and piano. She has played violin in the Wichita Symphony Orchestra for the past 20 + years and is the Vice President of Wichita Musician’s Union Local #297. She loves coming up with creative ideas to help both students and teachers be successful and blogs about it all at www.ViolinJudy.com.

Sarah Jane Naillon

Sarah Jane Naillon is originally from Winfield, KS and has played with Silver Sound String Quartet since 2004. In the Spring of 2010, she was selected as the Wichita Youth Symphony’s “Youth Talent” winner and performed the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the Wichita Youth Symphony at Century II Concert Hall. She has attended Oklahoma University in Norman, Oklahoma where she studied under Hal Grossman and Wichita State University where she studied with various visiting professors. She began her studies at the age of 3 and also plays Oboe, Piano, Ukulele and Guitar. She has played in various orchestras in Oklahoma and Kansas. She is the director of strings at Southwestern College.

Shelley Closson

A long-time resident of Wichita, Shelley Closson has played with the Wichita Symphony for 45+ years.
Other performance credits include Mannheim Steamroller; Music Theatre of Wichita; Ballet Wichita’s
Nutcracker; Wichita Grand Opera; Wichita Choral Society’s Messiah; Hesston College; Tabor College; as
well as numerous weddings, funerals and special services at nearly every church and venue throughout
the Wichita area.
Shelley earned the degrees of Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in violin performance
from Wichita State University. She traveled twice to Europe with the WSU Orchestra, performing
several concerts in Austria – including one with the Vienna Boys Choir. As a member of the WSU
Graduate String Quartet, she played concerts for children in elementary schools throughout Wichita.
Shelley also studied piano at WSU, becoming an accomplished, in demand, accompanist. Additional
violin study occurred at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, Conservatory of Music.
A former music teacher in the Wichita Public School system, Shelley also taught private studio violin
lessons for a number of years.

Joey Menninga

Joey Menninga, a native of Wichita, KS, has served as the director of the Chisholm Middle School and Santa Fe 5/6 Center orchestras in Newton, KS since 2004. Prior to his tenure in Newton, Joey taught orchestra in Hays, KS and has extensive experience teaching private violin and viola lessons. He has previously served as a part-time music instructor at Bethany College in Lindsborg, and was the viola coach for the Wichita Symphony Youth Orchestras Program for a number of years. Joey holds a master’s degree in music education as well as a master’s degree in educational leadership, both from Wichita State University, and a bachelor’s degree in music education and viola performance from Bethany College. Joey has played viola with orchestras from across the area including the Newton Mid-KS Symphony, the Wichita State University Orchestra, the Bethany College/Lindsborg Community Orchestra, the Hutchinson Symphony, the Salina Symphony, and the Hays Symphony. He has also played with the Bethany College String Quartet and currently plays viola with the Silver Sound String Quartet. Joey enjoysplaying the guitar and bass guitar and can be found playing these instruments at church occasionally. From 2011-2015, Joey was the bass player for the band Shine Like Stars (www.slsworship.com), and toured with the band throughout Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, California, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Ohio. He has also recorded three albums with the band. Joey is a principal in the Newton Public Schools.

Seth Girton

Seth Girton hails from Wichita, Kansas, where he began studying cello at the age of nine. Under the tutelage of Susan Mayo, he was an active participant in the Wichita Symphony Youth Orchestras Program for six years before earning a degree in mathematics at Oberlin College. He recently received his Master of Music degree from Emporia State University and maintains an active performance schedule with Wichita’s Friends University Community Orchestra and the Newton Mid-Kansas Symphony Orchestra, in each of which he is acting principle. Seth has also spent several years exploring non-traditional and experimental cello techniques and sharing these at venues in the Wichita area. He particularly enjoys raising awareness of the cello and its potential at local coffee and public houses. Additionally, Seth is the instructor of cello at Hesston and Bethel Colleges and at the Bethel College Academy and directs orchestra in Newton, Kansas.