Wedding Music Tips

Planning Your Wedding Music
Figuring out your wedding music, like anything, is easier once you understand it a bit more. A good starting point is to know what type of wedding music to have, when and when not to have music, and what are the musicians’ requirements.

Wedding Music - Have It Live
Your wedding is your very special day so it deserves the best. Wedding music performed by actual musicians at your ceremony is far better than merely having a machine play a CD. Live music will create a unique, romantic ambience, as well as give your wedding even more a sense of the occasion.

Type of Wedding Music
Wedding music for the ceremony is usually slow and gentle, whereas music for the reception is generally faster and louder. For this reason, soloists and string ensembles are very suitable for the ceremony.

Placement of Musicians
Place your musicians up the front and to the side so that your guests can see them play. Placing them at the front will also ensure that the sound is not muffled by people or objects, while having them to the side will put them out of the way of the wedding party.

Musicians’ Requirements
You will probably need to set up chairs for your musicians, since most instruments are played while seated. They may require power for amplification, so make sure there is a power supply nearby.

Wedding Music Outdoors
Musical instruments need to be sheltered from sun, rain and in some cases, the wind. Most musicians will need to pack up at the onset of even very light rain. A gazebo or large umbrellas can easily solve this problem.

How Wedding Music Fits In
A rule of thumb is that music is not played when the celebrant or bride and groom are speaking. However, the following sections of the wedding ceremony are great places to have music.

Wedding Music For The Prelude
Ask your musicians to play 15-20 minutes before the bride is due to arrive, so that your guests arrive to a lovely ambience. If the bride is running late, then the wedding music functions as extra entertainment.

Choosing Wedding Music For The Procession
The procession (bridal march) is the most important piece of wedding music you will have to choose. Make sure it’s not in waltz time, because it’s almost impossible to walk to. Your musicians should be able to give you a choice of suitable, walk-able pieces. Pachelbel’s Canon is a popular choice for this section.

Wedding Music For The Processional
Just before the processional, it generally works better for the musicians to stop playing a few minutes beforehand. This pause separates the procession music from the prelude music and makes the bride’s entrance more dramatic.

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