Music for weddings

[Nick Baty]

They must be – I don't remember listing them!

[contrabordun]

£50-75, doubled if video, and plenty of people charge more.

[Nick Baty]

Can be up to £100 round here and, yes, much more if videoed.

[SOP]

I checked Nick's references before I put up my earlier post and they are years old!

Nick has references????

[SOP]

http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=108133690605&h=QF_ZL&u=-4bRA&ref=nf

Who needs organists!

[Nick Baty]

SOP that was superb!
One of the few weddings I've seen where both bride and groom appeared glad to be there!

[oopsorganist]

I was looking for another thread on weddings but couldn't find it, maybe it was this one after all. Never mind.

I think this is the thread you were looking for. - Docmattc

Our wedding went well. In fact, any number of people told me it was the best Wedding they have ever been to. Which is odd. But there you go, things came together in the end. Since for sure twas not the Wedding Reception (and I use the term loosely) that impressed them, they must have meant the Wedding Service.

Biggest ever thankyou to my long suffering and brilliant music director. (Sorry about the state of the organ.)

[Merseysider]

And all captured on video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waon5FH5Fjo&feature=fvw

[FrGareth]

Returning to the issue of helping couples select suitable hymns for their wedding, I've been compiling a brochure for local parish use, which I can give to couples to help them plan their wedding. It's aimed at those who have no working knowledge of hymns, and whose wedding guests might know those tunes which have seeped into the secular culture from funerals, state school assemblies, or football matches.

So there is just one rule for inclusion: the lyrics must be singable to such a 'cultural' tune, WITH a sound sample file available on-line so the couple can hear what the tune could be.

I've also tried to compile a sampler of wedding psalms with on-line swatches.

I'd be grateful for any suggestions on additional inclusions, especially for the psalms.

If a copy of the hymn brochure INCLUDING the copyrighted text which I've not posted on the web would be useful to you, please feel free to PM me.

FrGareth

[HallamPhil]

This could be very useful. Do you intend to copyright the pages or can we install this kind of thing on Diocesan/parish websites?

[HallamPhil]

I would recommend two further unpublished texts from John Bell written for the wedding of Alison Adam and Martyn Coe a few years ago on the Feast of the Holy Innocents! 'Within the purposes of heaven' is intended for the melody of 'Dear Lord and Father of mankind'. 'As two are wed' goes nicely to the Sussex carol to which it was first sung ... appropriately as it was in season. I'm sure that if you speak to WGRG at the Iona Community Offices 0141 332 6343.

[Southern Comfort]

This looks a very useful brochure. A few small suggestions:

Most couples looking at it will not know what Bunessan means, but if you added

("Christ be beside me")

they'd know immediately what you were talking about. The same might be true for some of the other tune names, too.

I would not assume that your CCL licence covers all the items you have indicated. McCrimmon, for example, is covered by Calamus but not, I think, by CCL. I noticed other instances, too.

I'm pretty sure that it's possible to find out the author of the "Be our chief guest today" text. I have come across this elsewhere, and will try to find it again. Two websites indicate either author unknown or that copyright has expired, so it's safe to print it, I'd have thought. But I seem to recall finding it in a book, too.

I've experimented with different tunes for "When love is found and hope comes home". O waly waly (Danby) doesn't do it for me. I've tried Angel's Song with some success, but this year have had the happy inspiration (I think!) of omitting verse 4 (which is a bit strong for some stomachs anyway) and singing the remaining four verses to Jerusalem.

This http://www.reformedworship.org/magazine/article.cfm?article_id=287 is a useful source of ideas, despite the occasional misprint. It may be that you have already been to this page.

[VML]

A really useful booklet Fr Gareth, Tank you. I have PM'd you re the words.

I had a bridegroom come over to see me Sunday: The bride has chosen the hymns, it's only a service, not Mass, All things bright..can't remember what else, she doesn't want to come in to the traditional thing, and wants to go out to a pop song on CD....
His very dignified sacristan/ funeral director grandfather will be spinning in his grave.

[FrGareth]

Thanks to everyone who has offered useful feedback.

HallamPhil - I don't intend to assert copyright on my intro notes or the work of compilation so yes, by all means take, adapt, and publish in any way that doesn't breach copyright on individual hymns. I will PM a Word .doc with full lyrics of the in-copyright hymns to anyone working under the appropriate license, or who promises to explain to the couple that they will need to apply for a one-off license.

SC, I did consider labelling well-known tunes by examples of the best-known lyric to use that tune, but in the end I decided to use just the tune name - as a clickable hyperlink so you can recognise it by hearing. Your point is good, but I don't want couples to confuse the lyrics we're using with lyrics we're not using. I may have misattributed one or two inclusions to CCL instead of Calamus, I will check that when I am wide awake (remember, I work in 'Ar hyd y nos' country!)

More ideas welcome.

FrGareth

[festivaltrumpet]

Any collection of wedding music should of course contain the correct music to be sung at a Nuptial Mass.