Choosing Wedding Songs for the Ceremony

“Here Comes the Bride…” or not! You don’t have to go with the traditional wedding songs; you can choose what you want!

With my own memories of the kid’s version of the wedding march: “Here Comes the Bride, All Fat and Wide,” I knew I was absolutely not going to use that in my wedding ceremony. You may have heard that the composer, Wagner, was pro-nazi. Well, he wasn't exactly a nazi (he died before the nazi regime existed) but he did write a horribly anti-Semitic pamphlet in the 1850s. This is the reason that you’ll probably never hear this song in a Jewish wedding. I decided against it though, because it was just so not me. For some though, “Here Comes the Bride” is the ultimate of wedding songs, so if this song is you, then by all means, use it!

What are other good wedding songs for walking down the aisle? Of course the obvious answer is that any song that is meaningful to the two of you is perfect. You aren’t even restricted to classical songs or slow songs! I know a gal who strutted down the aisle to “Sweet Child of Mine” by Guns ‘N’ Roses. It was like a fashion show and people were talking about it (in a good way) for weeks afterwards. Okay, I admit it, this was in Los Angeles, this might not go over as well where you live.

If you have a song that is “your song” then an instrumental version of it might be perfect. Think about the atmosphere you want for your wedding ceremony. Is it elegant, fun, festive, friendly, classy, one of a kind, Celtic, Italian, natural, unique? Think of music that fits with how you want people to feel and how you’ll want to feel that day. You don’t have to choose something from those wedding music CDs, it doesn’t have to say “wedding” at all, as long as it says you.

It’s your wedding, do it the way you want!

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