West Tower Wedding Pianist | Craig Smith Music

West Tower is one of the North West’s most in-demand exclusive-use wedding venues, and one of the venues pianist Craig Smith performs at more than any other. As the venue’s recommended wedding pianist, and a regular performer at its open events, he is a familiar face to many couples even before their wedding day. With over fifteen years of experience at West Tower — often performing here multiple times a week during peak season — Craig understands exactly how weddings unfold at this venue, and how best to complement each part of the day with his live piano.

One of the defining features of a West Tower wedding is the way the day moves between its different spaces upstairs and downstairs. Craig's two-piano setup has been designed specifically for this, allowing music to begin with arrivals in the Cellar Bar, continue seamlessly through ceremonies and wedding breakfasts in the Ballroom, and return downstairs for drinks receptions and early evening celebrations. There are also several outdoor locations for live music, all of which can be covered. Craig’s live piano works particularly well here because it maintains a seamless atmosphere as guests move around the venue, and allows the energy to build through the day.

Watch Craig Playing at West Tower

This video shows Craig performing across several real West Tower weddings, with Ballroom ceremonies through to drinks receptions, lively wedding breakfasts and an evening sing-along back down in the Cellar Bar. It’s a great way to see how his live piano fits into the different spaces and how the atmosphere builds through the day.

Experience at West Tower Weddings

As the venue’s recommended pianist and a regular performer at its open events, Craig is a familiar face to many couples planning a West Tower wedding. That ongoing relationship, built over more than fifteen years working at the venue, gives him a detailed understanding of how weddings unfold here and how best to position and time the music throughout the day.

This level of regular work at West Tower means Craig understands exactly how to keep the music flowing smoothly from one part of the day to the next. His close working relationship with the venue team helps ensure everything fits seamlessly into the timings and running of each wedding.

Music for Your West Tower Wedding

The Ballroom is typically used for ceremonies and wedding breakfasts, where Craig’s portable baby grand pianos are often positioned at the top of the stairs to create an immediate focal point as guests enter and to help the sound project down the length of the room. For smaller celebrations, the piano can instead be placed on the same level as the guests, closer to the action with no need for amplification.

The Cellar Bar is a key space for guests’ arrivals, drinks receptions and evening turnaround celebrations. Because the venue is split across multiple levels, Craig typically provides a two-piano setup at West Tower. This allows music to continue seamlessly between the Cellar Bar and Ballroom without interruption, with no need to move equipment through guest areas during the day.

As the day moves into the wedding breakfast and early evening, many West Tower couples choose to make the music more interactive. Craig’s Electronic Request System allows guests to send requests directly from their tables, helping create the lively, guest-led atmosphere the venue is known for, and which can be seen in the video above.

Careful planning of piano positions is essential at West Tower. With ceremonies and wedding breakfasts taking place upstairs and arrivals often beginning downstairs, having both spaces prepared in advance ensures the music continues without pause as guests move between them.

Music Outdoors at West Tower

West Tower offers several excellent options for music outdoors, each working slightly differently depending on how couples want their day to feel. For outdoor ceremonies in the summer months, the piano is typically positioned beside the pagoda, creating a beautiful focal point while ensuring the music carries across the lawn. From this position, it can also cover guests’ arrivals beforehand and drinks receptions afterwards without needing to move.

The lower patio outside the Cellar Bar is another popular choice for drinks receptions. With a power supply located just by the doors, the piano can be positioned so that the music reaches guests both inside and outside, keeping the atmosphere consistent as people move between the two spaces.

Later in the day, the upper terrace often becomes the focus. With views across the surrounding countryside and West Tower’s Gin Bar in full swing, this is where many couples choose a more lively, interactive style of piano. As it sits just outside the Ballroom doors, the piano can be moved out easily after the wedding breakfast, providing seamless early evening entertainment while the evening setup takes place indoors.

For something a little different, the piano can also be set up at the front of the venue to welcome guests on arrival. From here, the music can be heard as guests walk up from the car park, setting the tone for the day before they even step inside.

Music Throughout Your West Tower Wedding

Choose music in the styles of your choice for:

• Guests’ arrivals
• Wedding ceremony
• Drinks reception
• Wedding breakfast
• Room turnaround / early evening

White and gloss black portable baby grand pianos are available, paired with a compact white electric piano to create the two-piano setup that allows music to move seamlessly between spaces at West Tower.

Planning your West Tower wedding? Get in touch to check availability and discuss music for your day. In addition to the dozens of videos of West Tower weddings you'll find on Craig's social media, you'll also be able to see when he's next performing at an open event. Follow Craig below!

Read more about the venue on the West Tower website, and other Lancashire wedding venues on our Lancashire wedding venues page.