Posted on GigSalad.com 9/11/2023 by Mark S.
"Brilliant in Every Regard
Our family booked Sinfonietta Arts for a 'celebration of life' of a loved one, to be performed at a large downtown Chicago private club. Sinfonietta Arts principal (and cello player) David Cowen was a delight to work with. He and I had length discussions about the music to be played and he took whatever time was needed to iron out the play-list with the family. He also showed outstanding proactivity by coordinating with Club management about the nature of the venue and the setup of the rooms (there were 2, one for the dedication and the other for the reception. And we were able to put on a program that meshed nicely with the speech-making and which was reflective without being morose. He and the violinist played the dedication part of the celebration and then joined to form a string quartet for the reception. Unfortunately the second room was quite noisy with many people in attendance, but David provided for amplification, showing great foresight. And the musicianship was wonderful! I have heard some string quartets in my life and Sinfonietta Arts just played beautifully, showing that they had honed their craft through careful rehearsal time. This 'celebration' was a wonderful tribute and highly successful in no small part because of our having retained David and his partners."
Posted on WeddingWire.com 10/15/22 by Evelyn R.
"Love love love
Guests loved their performance! I personally loved watching them play live and play so professional! I would 100% recommend! They showed up on time and played songs I loved. They were part of my dream wedding coming true!"
Posted on TheKnot.com 03/16/2023 by Melissa S
"My main contact was David and he was very responsive to me through both email and calls. We were looking for a small ensemble and he gave us options for other musicians he could work with to create the sound we were looking for which for us was a harp and cello. When we started our music process, David was very good about giving suggestions even directing us to some lists and example music. He also was open to playing anything from classical to modern rock adaptation given he had enough time to find the music and learn it. Our wedding was on Halloween and he even went out of his way to add some Halloween songs in during the lunch hour (of course after running it past us first). David played the cello and Janelle played the harp. It was beautiful. Guests were very pleased with the sound and selection of our accompaniments."
Posted on TheKnot.com 05/24/2022 by Daniel B (updated 10/15/2022 )
"David + ensemble were great for our wedding. They had a lot of repertoire (indulged my request for Mozart/Haydn/classical era only...) ,were able to pivot seamlessly when we needed to stall, due to chaos, and their timing was really good (ie. No awkward silences). There was a point where I (the groom) was told that they couldn't find the flower girls, and told David to stall. They quickly slotted in another piece, then 2 minutes later, cut off and hit the Pachelbel right as the flower girls came out. Also, as a musician who loves string quartet, I was pleasantly surprised with their ensemble playing. They know their craft, but as importantly, David seems very competent at the "event" side. When it's your event, in the moment you really appreciate that professionalism".
Rich & Lisanne C.
"We are writing on behalf of Sinfonietta Arts Chamber Ensemble. They performed at our daughter’s wedding during the seating of the guests, the wedding ceremony and during the cocktail hour prior to the reception. We found them be friendly, knowledgeable, attentive, accommodating, enjoyable to work with and very talented musicians.We met with them twice before the wedding during their regular scheduled practice times. We were looking for talented, meticulous and accomplished musicians. We viewed Sinfonietta as specialists in their field of music. We deferred to their judgment regarding music selections that had been well received during their past performances while respecting their experience and expertise. They guided us very well while showing patience and understanding during the process.They performed numerous classical options that they felt would be appropriate for the various aspects of the wedding upon our request. We selected whichever piece that we personally preferred. They were always eager to repeat the selection, play a different piece that we were more familiar with, or play something completely different. They were always very pleasant and sensitive to our needs.The most important and impressive aspect of Sinfonietta was their very talented, gifted musicians. We thoroughly enjoyed listening to each and every selection. We knew that they would dramatically enhance this special day. They also performed more contemporary music for the cocktail hour such as music from Broadway musicals.They were always professional, experienced and very accomplished performers. Our guests thoroughly enjoyed listening to them and were extremely complimentary. We would strongly recommend Sinfonietta. We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to have Sinfonietta participate and enhance the ambience of our daughter’s special day."
Sasha G.
"Love love love
We wanted to make Mother's Day extra special and Sinfonietta Arts did just that! A beautiful tribute. We are so grateful!"