Key Tips For Choosing Ceremony Music

A few months ago, bride and groom, Jill and Kevin Heinz, entertained us all with the viral video of their wedding march to Chris Brown’s “Forever”. Though this video was wildly popular (getting over 25 million hits on YouTube) a choreographed dance to a pop song isn’t for everyone’s wedding. Looking for something more traditional for your ceremony, but finding classical music to be a bit daunting? Well rest easy. Before you meet with musicians, take a look – and a listen – to my starter suggestions of classical ceremony pieces:

Prelude Music: used as guests are being seated for the ceremony, which can take up to 30 minutes

Air on the G String (Bach) One of my personal favorites! Beautiful as a string quartet.

Chorale Prelude: Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach) This piece can also be played on strings or a piano.

Processional Music: signals the beginning of the ceremony, including seating of the parents, bridal party, (sometimes of the grandparents), and finally the bride walking down the aisle

Trumpet Tune (Purcell) You will feel like an actual princess walking down the aisle to this song.

Trumpet Voluntary The Prince Of Denmark March (Purcell) The trumpets sound gorgeous and are a nice alternative to the more standard string instruments.

Cannon in D (Pachelbel) Can also work as a processional, recessional, and postlude.

Bridal Chorus (Wagner) You can’t go wrong with the classic Here Comes The Bride.

Interlude Music: generally a vocalist will sing these songs as the bride and groom give flowers to their parents, light a unity candle, etc.

Ave Maria (Schubert) If you would like to add a modern spin to this classic, check out Beyonce’s version.

Recessional Music: played after bride and groom have been pronounced man and wife

Wedding March (Mendelssohn) A timeless song to for the couple to exit the ceremony as newlyweds.

Ode To Joy (Beethoven) The last movement of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony is an elegant piece.

Postlude Music: played until all guests have exited the ceremony

Water Music (Handel) A lovely piece to end the ceremony with.

Happy (Music) Hunting!

From The Ceremony To The Reception: A Twist On A Classic

The overwhelming popularity of Beyoncé’s mega hit Single Ladies may have given your fiancé that extra push he needed to propose (or maybe he was just sick of you waving your empty ring finger back and forth in his face), but its hardly appropriate for your first dance as Mr. and Mrs. If you still want your dose of this diva – without the coordinated dance moves – check out Mrs. Jay-Z singing this version of Ave Maria. This pop-y version of a ceremony song combines the perfect amounts of tradition and modernism, plus Beyoncé sounds absolutely beautiful. Head right to dance floor, brides! It’s time to wave bye-bye to being a Single Lady, and hello to married life.

Check out “B” singing Ave Maria, with her song Angel as an interlude, live at the 2009 BET Awards above (and be sure to notice her wedding inspired dress) or click here to download the studio version from iTunes. studio version from iTunes.