The following is a collection of top tips for wedding ceremony music from the semi classical trio The Vard Sisters ,who have lent their captivating talent to countless couples for their wedding ceremony (including a few celebs along the way!) The Vard Sisters believe that the music you choose for your wedding ceremony is the key to the emotion on the day.
Any bride or groom would find it hard to argue as to what was the most memorable part of their wedding day –The wedding ceremony! Your ceremony will be full of incredibly special moments that you’ll hold dear for a lifetime, such as waiting for the bride to arrive, that ‘first look’ between the happy couple, the exciting and nerve-wracking moment when you take that first step up the aisle, or the tears that are shed when you say ‘I do’.
Although it feels like the majority of your weddings preparations are going into the reception, remember that the memories of your ceremony will never fade, hence the importance of putting similiar effort into its preparation.
As your guests arrive ensure that they do not arrive to an empty silence arrange to have nice background music playing to set the scene. If the mother of the bride is being escorted up the aisle, choose an appropriate piece of music to highlight her arrival or even just increase the level of sound as she is brought to her seat.
The Wedding Ceremony
Entrance– What you wish to walk up the aisle to is a completely personal choice. We find more brides wish to be sung up the aisle to a piece like Nella Fantasia (the theme music to The Mission) than to a piece of music. Lately, some brides have chosen to have the bridemaids walk up the aisle to a seperate piece of music and, after a pause, the bride makes a more dramatic entrance to an entirely different piece of music (We think this may have come from the movie Father of the Bride!) The old standard Bridal March is still as popular as ever, along with other pieces such as Johann Pachelbel Canon, Gigue in D, Vivaldi’s Spring or G F Handel Hornpipe in D from Watermusic are all appropriate pieces to make a grand entrance to, it’s a matter of taste.
“There is nothing in the world so much like prayer as music is “
The Candle Ceremony
TIP!Think about having the parents on both sides of the alter as you light your candles to symbolise the two families coming together.
For the music for your candle ceremony, you could play a reprieve of what you walked up the aisle to. We would advise you not to use anything too lengthy at this stage of the ceremony so as not to hold up proceedings.
Psalm: If your ceremony is a mass or service then an actual psalm needs to be sung. We suggest either: I Rejoiced , The Song of Ruth, The Hiding Place or On Eagles Wings.
Offertory: We always ask the priest to continue with the offetory prayers and offerings while we sing as it puts more meaning into what he is doing and also keeps the ceremony moving. Our favourite piece to sing at the moment is Caccini’s Ave Marie, it’s stunning – very ethreal – and, even though it was written in the 16th century, it has quite a modern feeling to it. Ag Chriost an Siul and all other Ave Maries are appropriate here.
Marriage Ceremony
TIP! Learn your vows off by heart. If you write your own vows there is a protocol to follow but this adds a new dimension to the ceremony and also adds to the emotion .
Lighting of the Single Candle
A shortened version of a meaningful piece is appropriate here as at this stage of the ceremony you are now man and wife ! We often sing The Song of Ruth here or a verse of Lakme s Flower Duet or a verse of Songbird in the style of Eva Cassidy.
Communion
The number of guests you have taking communion on your wedding day determines how many pieces of music you need at this stage of the ceremony. We would normally sing two pieces, the second piece often being used as a reflection piece, hence it should have a sentiment to it give your guests something to reflect on. We love Voice of an Angel for this purpose (hey, who doesn’t love an angel?!) Other pieces we recommend are Nocturne , The Prayer, The Flower Duet, Nella Fantasia, Send me an Angel and Pavanne.
“MUSIC PRODUCES A KIND OF PLEASURE WHICH HUMAN NATURE CANNOT DO WITHOUT”
Guest Reflection/Prayers
It is nice to support this with a piece of background music.
Signing of the Registrar Music
As the mass/service is now over it is not necessary to have a classical or prayerful piece of music. We suggest something emotional and uplifting such as Songbird , The Prayer, Moon River, Somewhere over the Rainbow, Evergreen, You Raise me Up orFields of Gold.
Wedding Exit Music
And now the party begins! Pick a piece of music that reflects this and puts your guests in party form. Again this is a personal choice and many do go with traditional classical pieces such as The Arrival of the Queen of Sheeba or The Bridal March etc, but you can use pieces from Riverdance or similiar very effectively. Any big uplifting piece that either has some sentiment attached to it or that is just a great big happy party piece will do the trick!
“MUSIC IS THE LITERATURE OF THE HEART IT COMMENCES WHERE SPEECH ENDS”
We hope this is of some help to you in planning your ceremony. If you would like any help with your music please do not hesitate to contact us on our website www.vardsisters.com
