Wedding Blog
Unlike the uber-hip-and-fabulous Miss Penguin, I’m not so much into Top 40 music. To be honest, I shut my radio off and stopped buying moderns cds six or seven years ago! I listen to jazz, and *weird music* (as my sister, a hip-hop-lovah, likes to call it), but mostly I love to listen to instrumental and classical music.
You’d think it’d be easy to choose the ceremony music - pick some favorites, and be done with it, but not so, unfortunately. All my favorite classical pieces are decidely depressing, or way too crescendo-y.
Moonlight Sonata? Let me just adjust my train, sleeping in a coffin totally wrinkled it!
1812 OVERTURE? Yeah! We can have cannons go off when the doors open!
And, I really don’t want something overdone in the wedding world - which makes choosing a song so much harder.
Could you help me find my processional song, readers? I’m looking for dramatic, but not militaristic, peppy, but not too fast, elegant, beautiful and smooth, but not too slow or boring, and something HAPPY. I haven’t found anything yet that really speaks to me, has a crescendo or really moving opening strain, and can be cut down to 60-ish seconds.
LIKE BUT NOT LOVE CONTENDERS:
DELIBES - flower duet
MANCINI - Theme from a summer place
JERIMIAH CLARKE: Trumpet voluntary (the Princess Diana wedding processional)
NO-Gos FOR ME/INSPIRATION FOR OTHERS:
DEBUSSY - Claire de lune
DEBUSSY - Reverie
BEETHOVEN - Ode to joy
BACH - Air on a g string
BACH -Pachebel canon in D
BACH - Jesu, joy of a man’s desiring
BACH - Sheep may safely graze
FAURE - Pavane
HANDEL - La rejouissance
HANDEL - Arrival of the Queen of Sheba
MOZART - March from the Marriage of Figaro
MOZART - Exultate jubilate
MENDELSSOHN - Bridal march
MOURET - Rondeau
PURCELL - Trumpet tune
SATIE - Gymnopedie
UNKNOWN - Prelude to te deum
VIVALDI - Any of the four seasons (we’re using spring for the recessional)
WAGNER - Bridal chorus
Can you please suggest some pretty classical or instrumental pieces for my big walk? I have two weeks to decide and try it out in our church!
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Delibes - Flower Duet is one of my favourite songs ever! I’m not sure what that would sound like as an instrumental though. It’s the operatic voices that I love. Thanks for all the inspiration!
We seem to have similar taste, what about these:
Charpentier, Te Deum
Stanley, Trumpet Voluntary
Vivaldi, Concerto for Two Trumpets
Torelli, Trumpet Concerto
Good Luck!
Woohoo! That pic is of a viola d’amore… the VIOLA of LOOOOVE!
Um… sorry.
I assume you’re using a recording and not live musicians, right? There are a lot of chamber music pieces that would work for you, I think: Brahms piano quartet (it’s violin, viola, cello, and piano) in A major, op. 26 (first movement), Brahms string sextet in B flat major, op. 18 (first movement or last movement, I think), Schubert cello quintet in C major (several movements would work). Also, the C major string quintet by Mozart, K. 515 (first movement) or one of the last variations from Bach’s Goldberg variations (piano, also arranged for string trio) would be beautiful. PM me if you want more ideas… I’m trying to think of similar music for our wedding right now, so my brain is totally working in that direction lately!
I am contemplating an instrumental version of Moon River 
If you like a Brazilian flavor try “Sounds of Bells” by Pernambuco. I’m using it for my recessional.
Here is a guy playing it on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnRVLd6lHFI&feature=related
We’re considering the Sleeping Beauty Waltz by Tchaikovsky.
I don’t know if you’re doing organ or not (I see you nixed Te Deum, which is probably what I’m using– Charpentier, btw), but here are a few I have liked on organ:
Rhosymedre — Vaughn Williams
Riguadon — Campra
Any of Bach’s prelude & fugues are also good.
I recommend Charles-Marie Vidor (sometimes spelled Widor)’s organ toccata (Symphonie No 5 In F Minor Op 42-1) - I am debating on using it as a recessional, but it is one of the grandest organ pieces ever written. It is fantastic.
I was having a similar predicament. Here’s what we decided:
processional: La Grâce – Georg Philipp Telemann- Organ and trumpet (live musicians)
(wedding party and bride, same music– the flow seems more natural to me, and it was recommended by our church to do it this way, since the aisle is relatively short).
recessional: Trumpet Tune- Clarke
The best resource I found for music was
http://www.stclementchurch.org/worship/sacraments/weddings/music.php
Song ideas are listed and you can listen to most of them. You can listen to both of the songs I listed above on this website.
I’m having the same problem! I’m trying to find an instrumental version of the wedding processional from The Sound of Music. It’s a nice march, but halfway through, the singing starts! Not sure if that suits your style, but I hope it helps!
One of my very favorite pieces is the first movement of Tchaikovsky’s Sonata for Strings. The fourth movement of Franck’s cello sonata (allegretto poco mosso) is also dramatic and romantic and happy, especially toward the end.
Good luck finding a piece you love…there are soooo many to choose from!
I’m using the Sleeping Beauty Waltz! I’m a princess at heart, too. =)
I recommend Handel’s Water Music, Air.
I used Jay Unger and Molly Mason’s The Lover’s Waltz for the bridesmaids’ entrance but was seriously considering it for the bridal processional.
What about Zadok the Priest by Handel. It’s very dramatic and the Crown Price of Denmark used it at his wedding.
Adoration by Felix Borowski is very pretty!
I agree on Tales of Hoffman- an instrumental of the Bella Nuit or the Entre’acte would be perfect.
I had a friend use a portion of “Gabriel’s Oboe” by Ennio Morricone last year for her processional - it has a crescendo AND really moving opening strain.
Pietro Mascagni - Intermezzo Sinfonico. It was my Plan B, and it’s my favorite piece of classical music ever. About a minute in, it becomes absolutely perfect for a bridal walk.
The music from the recent Pride & Prejudice soundtrack has some amazing piano solos that work perfectly for a ceremony- specifically “Dawn” and “A Postcard to Henry Purcell”
My brother will be playing the organ, and a friend of his will play trumpet during the ceremony. For the processional, they will be playing “Festive Trumpet Tune” by David German.
I walked down the aisle to Chopin’s Noctourne (Op. 72 in E Minor). It was the theme from a fantastically B list made-for-TV movie of “The Secret Garden” and it’s got a crescendo that’s perfect for the entrance of the bride. A friend of mine transcribed the piano music and played it on the cello…it was really beautiful.
If you are looking for something that bridges the gap between classical and something a little newer try Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 6. This was featured in a Handsome Boy Modeling School song titled “Look at This Face.” In my opinoin it’s upbeat and, as far as classical goes, it’s pretty hip.
I like the Allegro version done by the Berliner Philharmoniker. Hope this helps!
If you are looking for something that bridges the gap between classical and something a little newer try Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 6. This was featured in a Handsome Boy Modeling School song titled “Look at This Face.” In my opinoin it’s upbeat and, as far as classical goes, it’s pretty hip.
I like the Allegro version done by the Berliner Philharmoniker. Hope this helps!
I am hoping to use the horn soli from “Jupiter” (Holt’s The Planets). I am a french horn player and that is my favorite passage - so majestic and brimming with emotion! However, I will not have a full orchestra to play it, and although I have musician friends willing to write an adaptation (probably for Cello, which would be my sole cermony instrument), I am not sure how it will sound by itself.
Have you heard the Sinfonia of Te Deum by Lully, — it’s not one that I’d ever heard of. I found it on YouTube, and it’s upbeat, majestic, and I think it would fill a church beautifully. Try a search for it?
Wagner - Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral
Wagner - Pilgrim’s Chorus
Tchaikovsky - Journey Through the Snow (Nutcracker)
Puccini - Nessum Dorma (Turandot)
Shostakovich - Fire of Eternal Glory (one of my favorites)
Rachmoninov - Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
Shostakovich - Festive Overture (okay, that might be a bit much =)
I might be a little late to comment, but Rachmaninov’s “Vocalise” could be perfect.
@april: so funny that Wagner’s bridal chorus isn’t the bridal chorus of the opera, at all!
@ninanina: oohhhh…..never heard of the Tales, but I LOVE what I’ve heard so far!
@ashofautumn3: “Dawn” is beautiful…totally using it, somewhere!
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Mrs. Shortcake, Vancouver
Age and Occupation: 24, Marketing Manager/Children's Lit Writer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Master's Student/Personal Trainer
Engagement Date: August 7, 2007
Wedding Date: October 2008
Blogging Since:
Venue: Ceremony in a historic church, tented lawn reception at a golf and country club
About Me: 1950's housewife sent to the future, reborn as crafting-obsessed, jill of all trades. I enjoy decorating, writing, baking sweet things, singing show tunes/dancing in public, wearing pearls, and knitting sweaters for my furbaby, Harvey, to chew upon. I heart pink, and believe that sparkles are the new black.
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