“Not your parents’ music”.
I was poking around the internet looking for other information on planning church wedding music and was not encouraged by what I found.
While there are plenty of sites with advice for planning wedding music, even ceremony music, there is very little for planning a church wedding.
If it’s a church wedding you’re planning, it doesn’t help you much to have so little specific advice available.
It reminded me why I started Wedding Music Unveiled and made me glad that I did.
An article I found at one wedding music site used the phrase “not your parents’ music” to describe a kind of wedding music (probably classical, but not stated) that is supposedly now obsolete.
The self-described “professional wedding musician” author wrote it to help a bride choose music for a “traditional wedding ceremony”. But the article didn’t provide any specific advice that could help someone plan a wedding. In fact, what it did give was contradictory.
The point was that your music for a traditional wedding ceremony should be what you want to hear (not what someone else wants you to use) and that the music should be appropriate for a wedding ceremony. So far so good. I completely agree.
Times have changed?
But before getting to this point, the author said that years ago, most weddings sounded alike. Weddings were expected to use certain pieces of music, and that these certain pieces would now be considered “traditional”. But now, times were different.
Hold on! I won’t accept that years ago people used music that “they were expected to use”.
I don’t believe that people of previous generations only did what they were told, as if today’s generation is the first to discover individuality. I’m sure they chose music that they enjoyed hearing and that was appropriate. Just as is recommended today.
It sounds like an excuse.
What you need is better advice
If anything, it has been a more recent development (thanks to a general lack of knowledge about classical music, Hollywood’s depiction of weddings, and wedding guides that often recommend the same few pieces) that causes many weddings today to all sound the same.
When just about every wedding and wedding music guide (printed and web sites alike) recommends Pachelbel’s Canon in D, which then gets used in most weddings, we’re supposed to believe that it’s because of a previous generation?
No, I believe that so many weddings all sound alike because you aren’t getting the right advice. You’re not made aware of the choices you have. Over time, couples have been led to believe that there are only a few pieces of music suitable for weddings and that only these pieces should be used in weddings.
But that isn’t the case!
Advice that’s honest with you
The author said that most traditional weddings in those days used music religious in nature but that now couples are choosing music that is more personal to them. But then he wrote that your musical selections should be appropriate for a church.
Umm…what?
The author is anticipating your emotional response to the suggestion that you should choose music that is personal to you. He assumes you don’t like classical music (a fair enough assumption these days) but goes on to remind you that your music must be appropriate for a church.
So how is it that times have changed?
Plenty of choices
In contrast, I’ve decided that Wedding Music Unveiled will only give you straight up honest advice.
I’ll tell you that while your music doesn’t have to be classical, most (but certainly not all) music appropriate for a church is classical in nature (see “Church Wedding Music…Does It Have To Be Classical?”). And I’ll follow through with advice that’s actually helpful—see articles containing dozens of music ideas for
I’ll even help you determine for yourself what’s appropriate so you can choose your own music—see
- “What Everyone Ought To Know About Choosing Church Wedding Music”
- “Wedding Songs for Church Wedding Ceremonies”
I’ll encourage you to select music you like, not music that others suggest for you—see
- “The Secret to Making Your Wedding Uniquely Yours”,
- “Be Bold With Your Wedding Prelude Music!”
- “6 Wedding Ceremony Pieces of Music Everyone Ought to Avoid”
but still being honest with you that it should still be appropriate for a church.
Tell me what you think
Read some of these articles. Then I’d like to hear how you think advice at Wedding Music Unveiled compares to advice from other wedding music guides you’ve seen.
And if you have suggestions for how I can make it even more useful, please let me know. Your comments are always welcome and appreciated!
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