Playing Wedding Music in the Wild… or at Home Depot

When I first started my business as a solo pianist for weddings, churches, and special events, I quickly realized that not all gigs come with a conveniently located power outlet. Cue the inevitable question from clients: “Can you play at my wedding? It’s outside… and there’s no power nearby.”

Well, if there’s one place I’ve learned you can always turn to for a solution, it’s your local Home Depot. And so began my adventure, which ended up with me, my Nord piano, and a generator… in the Home Depot parking lot.

Yes, you read that right. Picture this: a full-size keyboard, a speaker system, and me, testing our power setup while curious shoppers walked by, probably wondering if I’d lost my mind or just really loved Home Depot. Thanks to a helpful associate, we found the right generator, hooked everything up, and voilà—music in the parking lot! Success!

But, as with all adventures, there’s a twist. Generators are reliable, yes… but they make noise. And let’s be honest, the soft, romantic notes of a wedding piano solo don’t mix well with a humming generator in the background. The better solution? A quiet, efficient battery pack—perfect for a serene ceremony on the beach, in the woods, or anywhere your love story unfolds.

So here’s the moral of the story: Home Depot is excellent for brainstorming and testing solutions on the fly, but sometimes Amazon delivers the quieter, sleeker option. Either way, a little creativity—and a sense of humor—can turn any logistical challenge into a memorable adventure. And yes, the memory of playing my Nord in a parking lot will always make me smile.