
Hello & Welcome!
Magnolia Music musicians Gari Benford and Audri Botkin are a piano + cello duo based in Columbia, Tennessee. They bring years of experience delivering solo and collaborative performances for public and private events of all sizes. Whether dinner parties, cathedral weddings, garden receptions, or vintage fashion shows, they enjoy creating the perfect backdrop with their beautiful rendering of a playlist customized for the occasion. Magnolia Music serves Columbia and the surrounding Middle Tennessee area, including Spring Hill, Franklin, Lewisburg, Brentwood, Murfreesboro, Dickson, and Nashville.
We make planning the music for your special event both enjoyable and seamless as we explore with you the genres and specific selections that will best reflect the message and the mood you desire to impart to your guests.
ABOUT US
Meet Gari (pianist):
Gari has worn a variety of musical hats as soloist, accompanist, band member, vocalist, arranger, director, and teacher. Gari instructs students of all ages through her piano studio in Columbia. She enjoys drawing and hand lettering and conversations with her grandchildren.
Meet Audri (cellist):
Audri has loved classical music since she was very young and enjoyed the gift of a musical education in her formative years. She spends her time making and tasting good food, practicing yoga, working at a local bakery, trying new things, and keeping up with her husband and three boys.
REPERTOIRE
A sample of what we can offer for your special day -
we have an extensive list of repertoire to choose from and if you have a special request,
we are more than willing to see if we can make that happen!
Traditional Selections:
- March, from Scipio (Handel)
- Trumpet Tune (Purcell)
- Air, from Water Music Suite (Handel)
- Claire De Lune (Debussy)
- Hornpipe, from Water Music Suite (Handel)
- Trumpet Voluntary (Clarke)
- Te Deum (Charpentier)
- Simple Gifts (Shaker Hymn)
- Ode to Joy (Beethoven)
- Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring (Bach)
- Canon in D (Pachelbel)
- Bridal Chorus (Wagner)
- Be Thou My Vision (Traditional)
- Wedding March (Mendelssohn)
- La Rejouissance (Handel)
- Sheep May Safely Graze (Bach)
- Largo (Handel)
Contemporary Selections:
- All I ask of You (Weber)
- Ashokan Farewell (Unger)
- What a Wonderful World (Thiele and Weiss)
- In My Life (Beatles)
- Fly Me to the Moon (Howard)
- Unforgettable (Gordon)
- L-O-V-E (Kaempfert)
- The Way You Look Tonight (Kern)
- Sunrise, Sunset, from Fiddler on the Roof, (Bock)
- Edelweiss, from The Sound of Music (Rogers)
- You’ll Be in My Heart (Collins)
- Grow As We Go (Platt)
- My Girl (Robinson and White)
- More Than a Feeling (Sholz)
- Perfect (Sheeran)
- Rewrite the Stars (Pasek and Paul)
- Unchained Melody (North)
- You Are The Reason (Scott and Maguire)
- The Mission (Morricone)
- Can’t Help Falling In Love (Weiss, Peretti, Creatore)
- A Million Dreams (Pasek & Paul)
- A Thousand Years (Perri)
- The Prayer (Foster)
- When Somebody Loved Me (Newman)
- A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes (David, Hoffman, Livingston)
- So This is Love (David, Hoffman, Livingston)
Hymns:
- Great Is Thy Faithfulness
- How Deep the Father’s Love for Us
- Before the Throne of God Above
- Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
- Be Thou My Vision
- In Christ Alone
TESTIMONIALS
MAGNOLIA MUSIC IN ACTION
A recent outdoor wedding, held in the lovely Harpeth Hotel courtyard.
We have our own keyboard and soundsystem, which allows us the ability to set up at a variety of locations.
CONTACT US:
Let's talk! Please fill out the form below and in the body of the message share the date and type of your event
(wedding, corporate, private party, etc.). We will be in touch within 24 hours!
Columbia, TN

Images by Kara DiCarlo
© 2024