About Us

Best of Zola 2023


Bay Area Strings provides premier string ensembles composed of seasoned musicians who give every performance their best, from the concert hall to the intimate church wedding to the lively dinner party!  Each musician has been studying their craft for 20-30 years and are active performers in ensembles including the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Ballet, New Century Chamber Orchestra, Opera San Jose, One Found Sound, and other local orchestras.  Unlike some booking agencies that throw together unfamiliar musicians of varying skill levels, our musicians are versatile professionals who work together regularly.  We pride ourselves on our extensive repertoire of high-quality song arrangements that both the audience and musicians enjoy.

We love to share the fun, complexity, and intimacy of chamber music with new audiences.  Providing live music at both happy and somber events is immensely rewarding, as music is such a wonderful way to express emotion and celebrate!

We serve the greater San Francisco Bay Area and most of central California from Mendocino, Napa, and Sonoma to Sacramento, Monterey, and Carmel.   Click here to see a list of some of the venues where we have performed.

Orange Photography

MANAGER - Jen Mathers, Cellist
Jen is a cellist and pianist who studied music and environmental sciences at Northwestern University.  She has played in orchestras and chamber music ensembles for over 20 years, including at the Kennedy Center, Fischoff national chamber music competition, and countless weddings, parties, musical theater productions, and late night chamber jams.  She is principal cellist of Symphony Parnassus in San Francisco and the Solano Symphony, and has performed with many professional orchestras around the Bay Area.  She also performs regularly in chamber music concerts with other Bay Area Strings musicians. She enjoys working with clients to bring the special touch of live music to their events, and especially enjoys creating custom arrangements of clients' favorite songs.

CLIENT FEEDBACK
The music was "handled" and was one less thing to worry about for us and we appreciated how well the quartet adapted as things changed. Most importantly, the quartet's quality of play was flawless and they were definitely a major highlight of our wedding.
(groom, livestream wedding in Menlo Park)

I wanted to say thank you so much to Bay Area Strings for making my wedding absolutely perfect! The music was so beautiful, especially [the pop song arrangements we requested] -- those are my favorite parts to watch on my wedding video!! You guys did an amazing job, I am so blessed to have found you!
(bride, Berkeley Rose Garden)

Everyone at the party loved the quartet. It was a beautiful background to the dinner and guests' conversations. A perfect compliment to the evening.
(company holiday party, Pleasanton)

Group was very professional. The consultation...was very helpful and informative. They gave great suggestions on which piece would work perfectly with each part of the ceremony. Music sounded beautiful and we were extremely pleased with the results.
(bride, St. Rose Catholic Church, Santa Rosa)

I cannot express fully how much the Bay Area Strings added to the Christmas Eve Service... It was such a joy to listen to you play and so easy to work with you.
(St. Andrew's Lutheran church, San Mateo)