The perfect wedding music
To make your special day truly exceptional, have my musicians accompany your wedding with an extensive range of repertoire to create the mood you have selected for your day.
Music before, during and after the ceremony – together we choose the perfect musical selection that will make your day uniquely yours and beautifully memorable for you and everyone involved!
Many couples would like to have their guests entertained before the ceremony while they are waiting for the bride’s arrival. As most guests arrive 20 or 30 minutes before the ceremony, it’s a good idea to have the musicians play either light classical music (think Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Mozart and Händel) or a more modern mix (What a wonderful world, Bittersweet Symphony, When a man loves a woman, Smoke gets in your eyes) that will set the mood for the ceremony.
Your guests will be happy to have some live music beforehand and it shows them that you want to make sure that they feel welcomed and taken care of.
This setup works well in a church but also at an outdoor wedding location or at the registry office.
Many of my clients prefer a string quartet, especially if it’s a bigger wedding. For smaller weddings, a flute and harp combination works especially well. By the way, both the string quartet and flute and harp duo are well suited for outdoor weddings.
Entrance music is a very personal choice and there is a wide variety of possibilities available for this special moment.If you prefer something modern, the following songs could work well: Yiruma’s A river flows in you, A thousand Years (Christina Perri), Can’t help falling in love (Elvis Presley) or Queen’s Love of my life. See below for a more extensive (but not complete!) list. For a more classical take, you can consider Wagner’s Bridal Chorus, Canon in D from Pachelbel, Mendelssohn’s famous Wedding March or even Clarke’s Trumpet Voluntary.
Whatever you choose, be sure to discuss your preferences with me as we need to make sure that your choice is suitable for your preferred ensemble and the location acoustics.
Once the ceremony is under way, a musical interlude with, for example, a piece of solo instrumental music or a singer accompanied by a pianist, is a great way to break up the different parts of the ceremony and it creates a moment of reflection. Popular options in the past year were Sheep may safely graze (Bach), Arioso (Bach), Pavane (Fauré), Over the Rainbow, Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen), Have I told you lately that I love you, some Beatles songs, All you need is love and Christina Perri’s A thousand years.
Just because a specific piece or song is “always” used for a wedding entrance, doesn’t mean that you have to select the same song. Many songs suitable for entrance music are also suitable for exit music or even interludes, so you have many options to choose from. It really depends on the atmosphere you would like to create and what is important to you on this special day.
The vows have been said, the register has been signed and the guests are waiting outside for the newlyweds to make their appearance. Create a festive atmosphere by letting the musicians announce your arrival with some jubilant music.
The musical entertainment doesn’t have to stop after the ceremony. Should you have a reception after the ceremony, a bit of light music to accompany your meal or hors d’ oeuvres will keep the atmosphere flowing without drowning out the conversation. The first dance could be accompanied by my musicians as well, but after opening the dance floor my musicians will gracefully leave you in the capable hands of the DJ of your choice!
Most-booked ensembles for weddings
The most-booked ensembles for weddings include string quartet or trio, solo piano, flute and harp, oboe and strings or singer with accompaniment (strings, piano or harp).
I work with established ensembles and soloists who are first and foremost members of orchestras and theatres in Wiesbaden, Frankfurt, Mainz, Darmstadt, etc. Because these musicians are professionals, it is very easy to ‘mix and match’ different musicians to create an ensemble specifically for your wedding. Professional musicians don’t always need to play in a pre-existing ensemble, they are extremely talented (that’s why it’s their day job!) and can easily form a group and provide a superb performance at any event.
I often get last-minute requests for weddings where the musicians fell ill or simply became unavailable. The advantage of working with professional musicians from Music by Cara is that any member of a specific ensemble can easily be replaced by another colleague as these professional musicians often play together in different orchestras and ensemble combinations. Because of this, you are always guaranteed a high-quality, professional performance.
Have a look at this more extensive repertoire list to get an idea of what the musicians offer. Please note that this list is not complete - almost everything can be played on classical music instruments. Simply contact me and ask me if your favourite piece of music or song can be played!
Repertoire list
Feel free to ask me if the musicians can play your favourite music.
-> Classical
-> Modern / Pop / Jazz