Ceremony Music Help

maybe984

So, I'm not a big fan of some of the ceremony-music-classics (with the exception of Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring... I friggin' love that song...) so most of the ceremony music I have picked so far are either instrumental versions of contemporary songs or contemporary-sounding arrangmements of classical songs. I feel like I need a few more for the prelude and postlude... and am trying to find stuff that fits into the overall scheme. I also want someone to validate that INDEED this music will all fit together.

Here's what I have so far:

Processional (including seating of parents): Falling Slowly- the Vitamin String Quartet version

My entrance: The Luckiest by Ben Folds (an awesome piano-only version that I found online)

Recessional: Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (a guitar arrangement by Leo Kottke, which I like because it clearly sounds guitar-ish and modernized without sounding too overly contemporary)

We also want to use an instrumental version of "Hallelujah"... the oft-covered Leonard Cohen classic... but haven't decided whether to do that as a prelude or postlude.

Any suggestions?

dcprep

I personally don't feel like Jesu is upbeat enough for a recessional. Usually you want the recessional to have all kinds of fanfare. Jesu is more common for a processional. Just my opinion

maybe984

Come to think of it, maybe you're right. Perhaps we can flip that around to the processional, have "Falling Slowly" be part of the prelude... and find something perkier for the recessional. Now just comes the hard part of deciding on what.

I kind of want to find another modernized-classical piece instead of another contemporary instrumental... to balance everything out. I have just run out of ideas about where to look.

laura_fett

I had the BM process into The Rose
I walked into Canon in D
Our recessional was The Music Box Dancer

We had a bit more mellow music, but I liked it that way!

shameless_ad

We're using the Lorie Line arrangement of Joyful Joyful for our recessional.  It's traditional, but with a contemporary twist.  Plus, it pairs nicely with Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring which we're using for our processional.

tpender13

I love "Hallelujah" but to me it's a really sad song, and maybe not right for the ceremony...

maybe984

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_minnesota-minneapolis-st-paul_ceremony-music-2?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:81Discussion:51e0e4f5-d8aa-4011-9145-bb08ea91b537Post:09020e50-9d31-459b-baae-6c9b4409576d">Re: Ceremony Music Help</a>:
[QUOTE]I love "Hallelujah" but to me it's a really sad song, and maybe not right for the ceremony...
Posted by tpender13[/QUOTE]

I totally get where you're coming from... but I think that the vocal part is what makes it seem sad. Moreso depending on who sings it (the Jeff Buckley version makes me weep like a baby). The instrumental arrangement I found of it doesn't seem nearly as morose.

If someone could find me an instrumental version of "Lover, You Should Have Come Over" I would totally swap it out for that (FI and I are huge Jeff Buckley fans...) but I haven't been as lucky finding it.

wittyschaffy

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_minnesota-minneapolis-st-paul_ceremony-music-2?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:81Discussion:51e0e4f5-d8aa-4011-9145-bb08ea91b537Post:6e95d2ad-4293-4dba-8660-6f08d9171fad">Re: Ceremony Music Help</a>:
[QUOTE]I personally don't feel like Jesu is upbeat enough for a recessional. Usually you want the recessional to have all kinds of fanfare. Jesu is more common for a processional. Just my opinion :)
Posted by dcprep[/QUOTE]

While I agree that it is most commonly a processional, we used it as a recessional at my wedding last fall.  We used a string trio and I requested it to be played fairly up tempo.  It was perfect!  (We processed to Ave Maria and recessed to Jesu as a nod to my Grandparents who had those two songs as their processionals in their weddings)