Ideas for your live wedding ceremony music
Your wedding ceremony should be a very special moment and we think that live music can help to make it even more memorable. When you have live music you don’t need to worry about a PA system or CD player malfunctioning; you don’t need to rely on an usher to fade the music in and out; and you can ask your musicians to perform your favourite songs in a unique way, creating special memories.
Down for the Count have some great options available for your wedding ceremony - the two most popular options, designed with ceremonies in mind, are our wedding pianist and our string quartet.
However, we've also provided wedding ceremony music as a vocal soul duo, as a 5-piece Dixieland Band, and as an instrumental jazz trio.
If you don't see quite what you're looking for, get in touch and see if we can create something completely unique for you. In 2018, we combined our wedding pianist, male vocalist and string quartet to make a completely bespoke line-up for Ailsa & Will, who wanted to hear Higher and Higher and Stand By Me at their ceremony. We even custom-orchestrated two songs for an opera singer friend to sing with the band. Find out more about Ailsa & Will's wedding here.
The possibilities are endless so just get in touch and let's begin planning your dream wedding ceremony.
- What Down for the Count provide
- Classical wedding ceremony music options
- Quirky and contemporary wedding ceremony music ideas
- Other things to think about when planning your ceremony
What is provided when booking Down for the Count’s wedding ceremony musicians
Our ceremony musicians can provide music for the whole ceremony:
- 15 minutes before the ceremony
- the entrance (‘procession’) of the bride
- the signing of the register
- the exit (‘recession’) of the bridal party
- any hymns or group songs
We can also stay after your ceremony, providing entertainment for the drinks reception at a fraction of the cost of booking two separate entertainers.
Live classical music for your wedding ceremony
Although we love modern music, we all trained as classical musicians and love performing it at wedding ceremonies. It provides a real touch of class and is definitely a very romantic option.
Down for the Count Strings
Down for the Count Strings are a smart and stylish group, available as a duo, trio or quartet. They perform all the classical music you'd expect but they are not afraid to mix things up - if you want, of course - and perform Jewish, Bollywood, Musicals, Film and Pop music.
They are fantastically versatile and can also stay to entertain you for your drinks reception.
ACOUSTIC? ✔ Yes - no electricity needed
REPERTOIRE? ✔ Classical, contemporary, films, musicals, Jewish, Bollywood
VIBE ✔ Romantic, stylish, sophisticated
Wedding pianist
Our simplest wedding ceremony music option is a classical pianist – me! I’ve performed at well over 500 wedding ceremonies and have a huge repertoire of classical piano music for each part of the ceremony. My favourite classical music for weddings includes Debussy, Chopin and Elgar – most of the pieces I play are well-known but not overplayed, which always seems to go down well.
Of course, a wedding pianist like myself is not restricted to classical music and can perform jazz music, songs from films and musicals, or even pop songs. Just get in touch with your ideas!
It may be that your choice of songs would be enhanced by adding a second musician. There are no hard and fast rules, but I tend to find that classical music can be enhanced by adding a cellist or a trumpeter to the pianist; and jazz, musicals and pop songs can be enhanced by adding a vocalist. There are no rules, so get in touch with your ideas!
It's also worth mentioning that I'm a trained church organist and have performed on the organ for hundreds of religious ceremonies in churches and chapels.
ACOUSTIC? ✔ No - electricity is required unless you have a piano at your venue or can hire one
REPERTOIRE: ✔ Classical, contemporary, jazz, films and musicals
VIBE ✔ Subtle, romantic, versatile
Live quirky and contemporary music for your wedding ceremony
We’ve gone through the classical options, but Down for the Count also have great options for performing “popular” music (which, for the sake of this article, we’re taking to mean anything from 1920s onwards – so that includes jazz, soul, pop, musicals, films… you name it).
First of all, as mentioned above a duo of pianist and vocalist is fantastically versatile and can play an enormous range of popular music. It’s also possible to swap the pianist for an acoustic guitarist, if you think that would suit your song choices better. Remember though that if you have a vocalist, you’ll almost definitely need to have a power source nearby for a small PA system – if you’re having an indoor ceremony this is rarely a problem, but sometimes it does create issues for outdoor ceremonies.
The Jazz Essentials
One great and unusual option for your wedding ceremony is The Jazz Essentials. They can play popular jazz standards and it's a fantastic, unusual option which will certainly make your ceremony stand out.
ACOUSTIC? ✔ No - this band usually requires one power socket, but acoustic options are available
REPERTOIRE? ✔ Jazz Standards
VIBE ✔ Sophisticated, unusual!
The Soul Essentials
Another great idea for your wedding ceremony music is The Soul Essentials. This band features a pianist and a female vocalist (and can be expanded with a saxophonist), playing a huge range of pop, soul and contemporary music. It gives a fantastic, chilled out vibe to your wedding ceremony and is highly recommended.
ACOUSTIC? ✔ No - this band requires one power socket
REPERTOIRE? ✔ Soul, Pop, Musicals and Films
VIBE ✔ Chilled, relaxed, classy
The Lady Gatsby Jazz Band
It's not very often that a couple have a 5-piece band for their wedding ceremony - but that certainly makes it stand out! We have performed at a few ceremonies with our 1920s band The Lady Gatsby Jazz Band. It's certainly quirky and unusual which is part of the reason it works so well!
ACOUSTIC? ✔ No - this band requires one power socket
REPERTOIRE? ✔ Jazz Swing, 1920s
VIBE ✔ Fun, lively, quirky
Things to think about when planning wedding ceremony music
I hope this article has given you ideas about music you could have for your wedding ceremony – but like I said, there are no rules!
When you’re planning wedding ceremony music, I’d advise you first to have a think about what sort of songs and atmosphere you want to create with the music – and then we can advise you on the best group of musicians to suit your requests. We usually find there is a bit of back-and-forth when planning the wedding ceremony – but it’s actually a lot of fun planning the perfect entertainment.
Do consider how far away the nearest power source is when planning your ceremony. Also consider where you’re going to position the musicians – as much as we’d love to have the power of invisibility, you will always be able to see us. We usually find that the best position for the musicians is in the front corner - it’s the easiest place to see everything that is going on, but being positioned slightly off to the side means we’re not in every single photograph (which you probably don’t want).
However, if it’s necessary to perform at the back of the room, it’s no problem at all. Please remember that some of our groups need electrical PA equipment, but we do our very best to make sure electrical equipment is placed as discreetly as possible so we don’t ruin the aesthetics of your wedding ceremony.
Any questions?
We love getting to know you when planning music for your wedding ceremony. Get in touch today with your live ceremony music ideas and we can start planning today!
About the author
Mike Paul-Smith has over 18 years experience in delivering bespoke live music and entertainment packages for wedding receptions and corporate events across London, the UK and internationally.
He is the company director, pianist and musical director of Down for the Count.
