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Weddings

About

Carolina Music Planner provides wedding music in Asheville, Greenville, Atlanta, Charleston, Savannah, Knoxville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh, Johnson City, & Highlands. Megan Johnson-Barnes, the founder & cellist, has been a part of the wedding industry for over a decade and specializes in string ensembles.

Carolina Music Planner offers a variety of live music options for your special day, and will coordinate the performances from ceremony music to the reception. After planning and performing music for hundreds of weddings, Megan Johnson-Barnes has streamlined the booking process to simplify it for the client from start to finish.

With diverse options from a classical string quartet to Appalachia/folk duos, CMP has an ensemble for every client.


Services Offered


Carolina Music Planner offers high-quality service options to each couple. Organized, concise packages make the process of finding the right fit for your wedding easy. In the end you will receive top-notch service and a stunning performance. Some of the services available include:

  • Ceremony
  • Cocktail Hour
  • Rehearsal Dinner
  • Reception
  • New Pieces
  • Travel
  • Woman-owned
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Frequently asked questions

Which of the following are included in the price of your most popular wedding package?

Ceremony Music
Cocktail Hour Music
Sample Music

What ceremony music arrangements can you provide?

Brass - Trio
Brass - Quartet
Brass - Quintet
Instrumental - Solo
Instrumental - Duo
Instrumental - Trio
Orchestra
String - Trio
String - Quartet
String - Quintet
Soloist / Vocalist

How many musicians are in your band(s)?

1 - 3
4 - 6
7+

What instruments does your group play?

Cello
Drums
Flute
Guitar
Harp
Piano
Trumpet
Saxophone
Viola
Violin

What services do you provide?

Ceremony Music
Cocktail Hour Music
Instrumentals
Learn New Songs
Liability Insurance
Music During Breaks
Reception Music
Rehearsal Dinner Music
Sample Performances
Sound/PA System
Vocals

Reviews of Carolina Music Planner

This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Review summary

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Carolina Music Planner receives glowing reviews from multiple couples who were thrilled with the diverse genres and professionalism of the musicians at their weddings. The string duo and ensemble provided magical and moving performances for ceremonies and cocktail hours, with personalized song selections adding a special touch. Megan, the point of contact, is highly praised for her responsiveness, expertise, and helpful coordination throughout the planning process. Guests appreciated the beautiful orchestral music that set the perfect tone for each event, with many recommending Carolina Music Planner for any celebratory occasion.

Review summary

Powered by AI
This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Carolina Music Planner receives glowing reviews from multiple couples who were thrilled with the diverse genres and professionalism of the musicians at their weddings. The string duo and ensemble provided magical and moving performances for ceremonies and cocktail hours, with personalized song selections adding a special touch. Megan, the point of contact, is highly praised for her responsiveness, expertise, and helpful coordination throughout the planning process. Guests appreciated the beautiful orchestral music that set the perfect tone for each event, with many recommending Carolina Music Planner for any celebratory occasion.

Lindsay
Lindsay Sent on 10/13/2021
5 out of 5 rating

A Dream Come True

I honestly can’t say enough AMAZING things about Megan and her team at Carolina Music Planner! It was always my dream to have a Disney wedding and for the music to sound like Disney’s philharmonic. I never thought it was possible…until I met Megan. She worked with us to create a custom set list for our ceremony and arranged an 10 piece orchestra for us. The music was absolutely amazing! I mean it actually sounded like I was walking through Disney World. Her music brought tears to my eyes because it was so beautiful. I felt like I was picked up and placed in the middle of a Disney movie. I cannot thank you enough for making my dreams come true and making me feel like a real life princess. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I will NEVER forget this day!

Oh and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND hiring Carolina Music Planner for your wedding/event! You will not regret it!!
Samantha
Samantha Sent on 11/29/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Great Ceremony & Cocktail Hour Duo

We enjoyed working with Megan from Carolina Music Planner in the year leading up to the wedding to select our perfect setlists. We selected the string duo for our ceremony and cocktail hour (amplified). The ceremony music especially was so moving, that many were brought to happy tears (bride included!). We recommend Carolina Music Planner for magical music to walk down the aisle to on your wedding day.
Haley
Haley Sent on 10/17/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Wedding Package Live Music

We hired Carolina Music Planners for our wedding reception and it all turned out exactly like we wanted. The selection of music was enough to fit all tastes in genre and the musicians that were there for us were very professional and excellent musicians. I thoroughly enjoyed their performance for our wedding day!
Hannah
Hannah Sent on 06/16/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Magical piano playing and easy booking coordination

Megan was a joy to coordinate with when booking our solo pianist for our wedding. We wanted to add live music to our pre-ceremony and cocktail hour playlist, and I had a few questions on what duos might sound best and Megan was extremely helpful and responsive in answering all my questions and guiding us in the right direction for the sounds and vibe we wanted to achieve. We ended up going with a solo pianist, and Tayler, our pianist sounded MAGICAL. She added the perfect backdrop to our mountain wedding. And my husband surprised me with a song he had learned and memorized on the piano and Tayler so generously let him play it on her keyboard. If I had to do this all over again, I would absolutely book with Carolina Music Planner again, and you should too!
Kayla
Kayla Sent on 06/16/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Perfect addition to our ceremony and cocktail hour!

We are so happy that we hired a strong duet from Carolina Music Planner for our wedding morning! Guests loved them and my brother even said it was one of his favorite parts was listening to the pop cover songs! They even were able to add a last minute request that we had to the ceremony for our unity symbol. We will always remember walking down the aisle to “I can’t help falling in love with you” on the strings! So magical!
H
Holley Sent on 03/22/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Magical Wedding

The music made the ceremony and the cocktail hour! Megan was so professional and got in touch with me immediately. The strings duo that played at my daughter’s wedding was amazing. We had several custom choices and those pieces made the ceremony extra special!
A
Ashley Sent on 11/04/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Book them!!

The entire experience from start to finish was perfect. We had to changed our venue last minute from the hurricane and they helped make the transition so smooth. Very great on communication, showed up on time and was a beautiful performance!
C
Claudia Sent on 10/23/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Carolina Music Planner

Carolina Music Planner provided a violinist and a cellist for my son’s wedding at Gaines Lodge. To say they were awesome is an understatement. When provided with a special request, they were able to adapt the song to fit the occasion.They played for the ceremony and continued through dinner. Meghan was very easy to work with and very attentive to details. As a musician myself, I highly recommend them for all of your music needs.
J
Jennifer Sent on 09/23/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Great communication, professional performers, perfect music

Megan with Carolina Music Planner is so great to work with. She is a great communicator and responds quickly to email. She is happy to work with my clients if they are having challenges choosing songs for their event. The performers always arrive on time and are very flexible and fun to work with. I would recommend this company without any hesitation, and have been working with them for many years. Jenn with Events by Kiersa (Asheville, NC)
Yugank
Yugank Sent on 09/18/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Wedding Trio

Our instrumentalists were amazing! We had an interracial wedding with a Hindu ceremony in Asheville, NC and our trio played a diverse set list over the course of several hours. They first played the "Wedding Stars & Rings" and "Sweet Carolina" set lists for the prelude prior to our wedding ceremony. They then had a few Hindi songs they played for the processional. They then moved onto "Tonight's Gonna be a Good Night" and "Viva La Bruno and Ed", 2 hip hop, R&B and pop set lists, which were a huge hit! Finally, they did an impromptu collaboration with a tabla player (indian musical instrument) for 2 more Hindi songs. We could not be happier with their performance and broad musical range. And Megan was amazing to coordinate with (super responsive and helpful in selecting music)!
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Awards

129
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2023 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2022 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2021 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2019 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2018 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2017 Winner

Professional Network & Endorsements

5 Endorsements
PLAIN WITH SPRINKLES EVENTS PLAIN WITH SPRINKLES EVENTS Wedding Planners

YALL - One stop shop for your live music! They will set you up with everything you need - Almost all female musicians - including bagpipe!! They go above and beyond for you.

Bespoke Strings, LLC Bespoke Strings, LLC Wedding DJs

Megan is an excellent cellist! She is innovative and can play any genre of music! You won't be disappointed with her work.

Ten Cent Poetry Ten Cent Poetry Wedding Musicians

Megan is one of the most professional musicians I have had the honor to know, work with and perform for. She has everything needed to be a successful contribution to any event and works hard to keep the bar high. She is smart, classy, incredible with communication, organized, hard working and is a virtuoso player. If you are lucky enough to book her, you are well on your way to a beautiful wedding!

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