65 Songs to Play Before Your Wedding Ceremony Starts (2023)

FAQs

65 Songs to Play Before Your Wedding Ceremony Starts? ›

Generally, five or six songs are the right amount, so take a listen to 65 of our favorite ceremony prelude songs and have fun making your selections.

Generally, five or six songs are the right amount, so take a listen to 65 of our favorite ceremony prelude songs and have fun making your selections.

Prelude – When planning when to play music at your wedding, it's important not to forget music before the wedding actually starts. As guests walk in and take their seats for the ceremony, it's nice to have some music playing in the background.

1. Bridal Chorus, Wagner. Often known as Here Comes The Bride, this piece of classical music is the traditional choice for the procession of the bride, and is often played on an organ.

The number of processional songs you'll need depends on a few factors including the number of people walking down the aisle and the length of the aisle. Usually people choose two processional songs—one for the family and wedding party, and then a more dramatic and emotional song for the bridal processional.

You can choose one song for the entrance of the officiant, groom and best man and one song for the entrance of the bridesmaids. Another option is to use one song for both bridesmaids and groomsmen. If you have a large wedding party you may need up to three songs for the processional.

Most civil ceremonies will have: One song during the processional (walk down the aisle / bridal entrance) Three songs during the signing of the register. One song during the recessional (exit of the married couple)

3-4 p.m. is the ideal start time.

You may have a “Sunset Ceremony” this time of year by starting 30 min prior to sunset, but you MUST take most of your couple and bridal party photos before the ceremony.

What is a pre processional song? ›

The Prelude - Played as the guests arrive and take their seats. 2. The Pre-Processional - Played as the honored family members walk down the aisle.

How many songs do you need for a wedding ceremony? There are three big moments to pick music for: both of your processionals (one song each) and the recessional. Your partner's processional could also be the song the wedding party walks down the aisle to, or they can have a tune all their own, as you'll have.

Wedding recessional songs, better known as wedding exit songs, are played as the couple walk back down the aisle as newlyweds and the guests clap wildly. Happy, celebratory and bursting with love, your wedding recessional song should reflect the excitement you're feeling inside.

The average song is 3 minutes long. It can take 20 seconds for a couple to prepare and get from the entrance to their seats or the dance floor. As you increase the number of introductions, add on another song.

Wedding music commences, either a separate song for the Bridesmaids to enter and a different song for the Bride. Alternatively, the entire wedding party can use just one song.

The groom, followed by his groomsmen, can walk down the aisle to a song that's just for them. The groom, followed by his groomsmen, can come in from stage left (the guests right) and get into place to a song just for the guys.

To make a grand entrance, you're going to need to pick a suitably grand entrance song to walk down the aisle to. Your choice of processional song will help set the tone for the rest of your wedding ceremony, and you can continue your chosen musical theme for other important moments, such as your first dance song.

Well, on the one hand, the average song length is 3-5 minutes. But the average time for someone to walk down the aisle is about 30 seconds.

From walking down the aisle first to last, the traditional order is: Mother of Bride, Mother of Groom, Grandparents of Bride, Grandparents of Groom, Groom, Officiant, the Wedding Party, Maid of Honor and Best Man, Ring Bearer, Flower Girl and lastly the Bride and her Father.

A typical wedding reception will see about 3 hours of dancing after dinner and all the formalities are over. That is just 45 songs. It's never a good idea to give your DJ a list of 100 songs to play, there is no way they will have time to play them all and they won't know what the most important ones are.

How do you organize music for a wedding ceremony? ›

The number one pick and best wedding song: the romantic ballad "All of Me" by John Legend, which is an example of great songs to walk down the aisle to or marriage songs for playing throughout the celebration.

A Groomsman

This is the traditional choice and gives the guy another few moments in the spotlight. If the bride has a stepmother, she would be escorted to her seat by a groomsman before the mother of the bride; the bride's mom should be the last person to be escorted down the aisle, just before the bridal party.

The Groom: The groom proceeds to walk down the aisle accompanied by their parents, with his father on the left and his mother on the right. The Bridesmaids: The bridesmaids then proceed in pairs, starting with those standing farthest from the bride. The Maid or Matron of Honor: The bride's right-hand woman walks alone.

On average, a wedding ceremony is about 30 minutes long. This would include time for an average-sized processional and a basic ceremony that includes one to two readings. If your bridal party is extremely large or you have multiple sets of parents and grandparents, you might need some extra time.

Welcome to all of you, who have come to share in this important moment in the lives of BRIDE and GROOM. I ask you to join together in celebrating, acknowledging, and honoring this day and the vows that they will be making. By your presence, you witness and affirm the truth of their love and commitment to each other.

It is said to be best to marry on the half-hour, when the clock hands are moving up rather than at a time when the hands are moving down the clock, symbolizing the marriage going downhill.

Hands down, Saturday is the most popular day of the week for weddings. Many people have off from work, and it gives out-of-town guests Friday evening and Saturday morning to travel. It also gives you and your guests Sunday to recover from the festivities before it's back to work or honeymoon time.

How many slow songs for wedding? ›

Something to keep in mind is that too many slow songs can bring down the mood of a wedding reception. A good rule of thumb is to have one slow song for every five fast songs. Guests typically need a rest from dancing after about 20-30 minutes, which equals about five fast songs.

Majestic and beautiful, 'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring' by Bach is a popular piece to accompany the bride walking down the aisle. Another traditional favourite is 'Here comes the bride': Wagner's 'Bridal Chorus' from Lohengrin. And you can't go wrong with Handel's 'Arrival of the Queen of Sheba' from Solomon.

“Happy” by Pharrell Williams. “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” by The Darkness. “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston. “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars”Heroes (We Could Be)” by Alesso ft.

Entrance music (also known as an entry theme or walk-on music) is a musical piece or song that is played for athletes or entertainers when they first appear in front of the spectators before beginning a performance.

An overture is incidental music that is played usually at the beginning of a film, play, opera, etc., before the action begins. It may be a complete work of music in itself or just a simple tune. In some cases it incorporates musical themes that are later repeated in other incidental music used during the performance.

Wedding Ceremony Music

Usually, you'll need some music during the walk down the aisle (we'll get to that a bit later!). You'll also want a few songs during the signing of the register if you're having a civil ceremony. This is then followed by a song during the recessional, which is when the newly married couple exits.

Keep it 90% Fast Songs, 10% Slow Songs

A good wedding reception playlist will have high moments and low moments- fast songs and slow songs. Times for people to dance close, times for people to slow dance, and even times for people to go get a drink so they can enjoy the dance floor even more.

Classic choices for outdoor weddings include harpists, string quartets and acoustic singers. Alternatively you could choose to play recorded music from a phone or tablet hooked up to a speaker system. If your venue specialises in outdoor ceremonies they may well have an outdoor sound system already in place.

The bride and groom will dance first. This is the usual format. Then the parent dances with the couple - the father with the bride and the mother with the groom. The groom's father will then dance with the bride and the groom with the mother-in-law.

Does the mother of the bride walk in to music? ›

The seating of the bride's mother is the first activity attached to the processional. The music played can be used for the seating of the bride's mother, the entrance of the groom and his best man and the attendants. The same song can be used for all.

As the wedding begins, the groom's mother will be escorted down the aisle, to the first pew, right-hand side, by the head usher or a groomsman who is a family member. A nice touch includes the groom escorting his mother down the aisle. As the groom's mother is escorted to her seat, her husband will follow along behind.

After those people take their places, the best man and the groomsmen traditionally walk down the aisle, in order to protect the groom from evil spirits or attackers. Then the bridesmaids make their way down the aisle, followed by the maid of honor.

The bride processed down the aisle to the anthem "I was glad", written by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, from Psalm 122. It was composed for the crowning of Prince William's great-great-great grandfather, Edward VII, at Westminster Abbey in 1902.

Walk down the aisle together.

Many couples now choose to meet at the top of the aisle and walk it together. It's a lovely way to signify that you are taking this journey together as equals. Meet at the altar: A fun twist on walking the aisle together is to walk it separately but at the same time.

We recommend having background music playing 30 minutes before your ceremony is scheduled to start. It sets a nice ambiance for guests as they mingle before taking their seats. Check with your DJ, most we've worked with have a prelude playlist in place.

Well, on the one hand, the average song length is 3-5 minutes. But the average time for someone to walk down the aisle is about 30 seconds.

The average song is 3 minutes long. It can take 20 seconds for a couple to prepare and get from the entrance to their seats or the dance floor. As you increase the number of introductions, add on another song.

Wedding ceremony music or music for civil weddings is normally the first music that your guests will hear on your wedding day. Choosing appropriate wedding ceremony songs can be difficult and should be thought about carefully. Most people have music starting 10 to 20 minutes before the ceremony.

Wedding music commences, either a separate song for the Bridesmaids to enter and a different song for the Bride. Alternatively, the entire wedding party can use just one song.

How do you prepare music for a wedding ceremony? ›

Try not to request too many songs

“You've got to trust their judgment,” Groh says. “Give them 10 or 20 of your favorite songs and let them do the rest of the work. And if you want to see dancing, make sure the songs are danceable.

At a wedding reception, the Grand Entrance (also known as a Grand March) is one of the highest energy parts of the event. The song that you walk in to helps set the tone for the evening, so think of fun, upbeat songs.

The groom, followed by his groomsmen, can walk down the aisle to a song that's just for them. The groom, followed by his groomsmen, can come in from stage left (the guests right) and get into place to a song just for the guys.

If the mother of the bride is taking part in the wedding processional, she is traditionally escorted by a close male relative like a son or brother or may enter alone. If the parents are divorced, she may be escorted by her partner. In some cases, a groomsman or best man will escort her down the aisle.

If you're booking a wedding band or DJ, you can expect them to offer a standard arrival time of around 5:30pm to 6:00pm, giving them plenty of time to be set up before your evening guests arrive.