What do two violinists do when they want to get married but have to perform at a concert? For Rachael Mathey and Michael Ludwig, the answer was both, thanks to Mayor Nutter and the Philly POPS.
Rachael, a First Violinist with the Philly POPS, went backstage during the Sinatra: A Centennial Celebration concert Saturday afternoon at the Kimmel Center shortly before intermission. She then changed into her wedding gown, with the help of her mother, and then walked down the center of the stage with her father toward her groom, violin soloist and Concertmaster of the Philly POPS, Michael Ludwig.
Around 2000 people in the audience and 65 members of the Philly POPS orchestra watched the special ceremony unfold as singer Michael Andrew sang, “All the Way Home.” Maestro Michael Krajewski took a brief break from his role as conductor and served as the ring bearer while Mayor Michael Nutter performed the ceremony.
After both saying, “I Do,” the newlyweds left the stage as the orchestra played Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March.” Ever the professionals, the couple returned to the concert after intermission and Rachael performed with the orchestra in her wedding gown. After the concert, they celebrated during a private wedding reception. They’ll return to the stage Sunday and perform again with the Philly POPS as husband and wife.
“So exciting,” Rachael told NBC10. “Words can’t even describe how exciting this feels!”
The two met during the summer of 2007 while Rachael was a violinist in the National Repertory Orchestra, playing in Breckenridge, Colorado. Michael caught Rachael’s eye when he appeared as a guest violin soloist with the orchestra for one week. The moment she laid eyes on him, Rachael says she thought he was, "the most handsome man I have ever seen."
Michael was instantly smitten as well. After he received an email from Rachael, he flipped through the orchestra program book to see if the message matched the face of the beautiful violinist he first noticed. Once he realized it was her, Michael emailed her back, beginning a friendship that lasted for two years.
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The two stayed in touch as Michael continued performing around the world while Rachael completed her Masters’ degree in music performance at Carnegie Mellon University.
Their friendship reached a turning point in October, 2009, when Michael visited Rachael in Pittsburgh. Despite their hectic schedules, the two began a relationship which led to Saturday’s wedding. For the newlywed violinists, it was the culmination of a love story as classic as the music they both play.
