Violin and Cello Duo Hire

The Violin and Cello Duo is one of our most recommended choices at String Musicians London. As a string duo, we can perform all types of music and we are even more versatile than a string quartet. Our musicians are so musically adept that they find improvising and harmonising as easy as breathing, and can play almost anything on sight. Special musical requests for a violin and cello duo are very easily arranged, too. The treble notes of the violin and bass line of the cello mean that any string duo performance will be musically complete.

Book a Violin and Cello Duo

We specialise in violin and cello duo music! All our arrangements are bespoke and carefully crafted to suit the ensemble and instruments. What we have noticed is that a lot of other groups in London neglect the string duo repertoire. Most duos just play from the quartet scores and use string quartet arrangements, which usually doesn’t work for a duo. In a string quartet, the melodic line is often shared between instruments. The reason why our violin and cello duo is so versatile and can play basically anything is because we are able to adapt the music directly from the piano part. Imagine the violinist playing the treble/right hand of the piano, and the cellist the bass/left hand – and Voilà! That’s why our violin and cello duo is so popular! We can offer a musically complete rendition of any song or piece.

Hire a String Duo for your Wedding or Event

A string duo has the added bonus of being able to fit in most spaces. We don’t need as much room as a string quartet, and we aren’t much quieter than a string quartet either! If you’re after a bit more volume for your event, you can hire the violin and cello duo amplified, with or without backing tracks. We can bring our portable PA system with mics if your venue doesn’t already provide these.

Our professional violinists and cellists have all been trained at the best conservatoires in London, including the Royal College of Music and the Royal Academy of Music. We perform as soloists, chamber artists and with orchestras including the London Symphony and Royal Philharmonic. We’ve shared the stage with Bocelli, Ellie Goulding, Ed Sheeran and Adele. Our string duos and musicians approach each musical performance with fresh vigour, whether we’re playing a concert in the Royal Albert Hall or a wedding ceremony at the Old Marylebone Town Hall! We are always delighted to play beautiful music. We love sharing our music with clients, and have been performing for weddings and special events for over 10 years.

List of backing tracks

Avicii – Wake Me Up, Hey Brother
Bruno Mars – Uptown Funk
Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines
Sigala – Came Here for Love
Coldplay – Viva la Vida
Britney Spears – Toxic
Tones and I – Dance Monkey
Dua Lipa – One Kiss, Don’t Start Now, Levitating
David Guetta – Dangerous
Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get it On
Cristina Perri – A Thousand Years
Michael Jackson – Billie Jean
Jason Derulo – Want to Want Me

Ed Sheeran – Shape of You, Photograph, Perfect
OMI – Cheerleader
Walk the Moon – Shut Up and Dance
Clean Bandit – Rockabye, Solo
John Legend – All of Me
Shawn Mendes – Senorita
Pharrell WIlliams – Happy
Bond – Fuego
Jenkins – Palladio
Vivaldi – The Storm (Winter)
Cohen – Hallelujah
Mariah Carey – We Belong Together

Elvis – Can’t Help Falling in Love
Bruno Mars – Marry You
Pachelbel – Canon
Handel – Queen of Sheba
Ellie Goulding – Love Me Like You Do
Jazmine Sullivan – Need U Bad
Luther Vandross – So Amazing
Anita Baker – Sweet Love
Mariah Carey – Endless Love
Ahesta Bero
Hercai
Al Yazmalim

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between a Violin and Cello Duo and a String Quartet?

If you decide to hire a violin and cello duo, you certainly won’t be compromising on anything! The repertoire, quality of music and performance will be just as excellent if you hire a violin and cello duo rather than a string quartet. As mentioned before, the string duo can play anything, just like a pianist. We don’t use quartet arrangements when performing as a string duo, because this renders an incomplete-sounding performance. It’s even easier to play your special request as a violin and cello duo compared to a string quartet, in fact! If you have a musical request that isn’t on our repertoire list do let us know and we’ll arrange it for you!

Our repertoire ranges from Classical to Pop, Bridgerton to Bollywood – just get in touch and we’ll be delighted to perform for your event! You can see our list here.

How can I book the Violinist and Cellist?

After confirming our availability with you and deciding on the details – ensemble, location, date and time – we’ll email you an invoice for the 25% deposit along with our contract. The booking is confirmed upon receipt of payment. We also accept last minute bookings, so don’t worry if you’re in need of a last minute musician! We can help! For bookings made less than 4 weeks prior to the event, the entire payment is due up front. We accept payment via bank transfer, and if you need to pay by card this is also an option. We do not charge VAT, and our rates are competitive, so get in touch today and we’ll email you our price list 🙂

How long can I hire the Violin and Cello duo for?

For a civil wedding ceremony, an hour should be sufficient, unless you are having a Catholic Mass or Nikkah ceremony. In these cases we recommend a two hour booking. For a civil ceremony, we recommend booking the string duo to play as your guests enter the room and take their seats, so that we can set the mood with some beautiful romantic music.

During the ceremony we will play for the entrance of the bridal party. You can choose your favourite song for this, something that has some special meaning for you. The next song or musical piece we play is during the signing of the registry. We recommend choosing a couple of songs for this because the signing can take a few minutes. Then, for your exit music – something upbeat and fun to celebrate you as a married couple! If you need recommendations flick us a message and we can offer some suggestions.

After the ceremony, most couples hire the violin and cello duo to play for an hour or two during cocktails and canapes. Sometimes we are booked for the whole day, to perform during the wedding breakfast and first dance also! We are very flexible, so just let us know how long you’d like to hire the duo for. Of course, musicians need sufficient breaks, so for bookings over an hour we require a 10 min break every hour. For longer bookings of 3 hours or more we also require a meal break. Just to keep our fingers fresh!

Can the String Duo perform outdoors?

Yes, we often play outdoors in summer! This is entirely possible as long as we and our instruments are sheltered from sun, rain (including rain coming in at all angles with wind), and bird droppings. We recommend a gazebo or some large sturdy umbrellas for this purpose.

If I want to book the Violin and Cello Duo for a large event would I be able to hear you playing?

Yes, for sure, we play for lots of large events and have very happy clients! The thing about noise is, the louder we play, the louder the guests speak! Clients love the fact that we set up in a corner of the room, and guests come and go, listening to us as they please. However we can bring microphones and a PA system if you feel this would be better for your event. This is a fantastic option for events in large halls or if we are performing for your grand entrance and first dance. If your event is outdoors, you must check with the venue to see if it’s ok for us to play with amplification.

Most of the time we don’t need to play with amplification! But the option is there for you if you want it. We can also perform with our selection of backing tracks, which are very fun, and will get your guest dancing!