Catholic & Christian Wedding Ceremony Music: A Guide for Melbourne Couples
Are you having a Church wedding ceremony? Planning music for a church wedding ceremony may look a little different to a civil ceremony.
Alongside picking the songs that you love, there are certain order of service and guidelines to follow. In general, church wedding ceremony musicians need to play almost twice the amount of songs compared to those playing in civil ceremony.
Having performed at many Catholic and Christian weddings across Melbourne, we are here to provide you with simple guides on how to prepare for your church wedding ceremony.
How is a church wedding ceremony different to a civil ceremony?
First of all, the content and order of service.
Civil ceremony usually has 5 - 6 main items: bridal procession, vows / ring exchange, declaration of marriage, signing of papers, and recessional. It usually lasts about 30 minutes.
In comparison, Christian and Catholic ceremonies follow a more established order of service, which can go from 45 minutes to over an hour. Depending on the church, parish, and denomination, the typical church ceremonies may include these additional items on top of the ones commonly found in civil ceremonies: offertory, communion, homily/sermon, praise and worship, lighting of unity candle, among others.
Secondly, the song selections.
Couples have the freedom to choose any song that they love in a civil ceremony. Usually, there are 3 specific points which require music: processional, signing, and recessional.
While in church ceremonies, there are certain songs and setlist in respect to the order of service and church’s guidelines. In general, any songs with profanities are not allowed and song arrangements should feel fitting to the sacred setting. In most cases, churches are flexible for you to choose any songs for the civil ceremony components of the church ceremony, namely the bridal procession, signing, and recessional. However, certain Christian/ Catholic songs will need to be used for the other items within the mass / order of services, e.g. communion, offertory, lighting of unity candle, etc.
In most cases, we always recommend couples to check their song selections with their pastor or church before finalising the music. The last thing you’d want is to lock in the songs and found out they are not approved a week before the wedding!
Where will we need music during our church ceremony?
Every church is a little different, but these are several moments where music is commonly included
The Processional. Music that accompanies the entrance of the wedding party and the couple. In most churches, the couples are given the freedom to choose the music of their choice - as long as there are no profanities and the arrangement is fitting to the setting. You can choose one song for the entire processional or different songs between the bridal party and the bride.
Praise and Worship. Most commonly found in Christian weddings, there are usually one or two songs intended for the congregation to sing together. There are usually 2 points of praise and worship in the service: one right after the opening prayer and one at the end (before signing and processional). This is when choosing an experienced church ceremony musician is particularly helpful here. Rather than simply performing a song for your guests, the musician will need to lead the worship and allow the congregation to join in.
Liturgical moments (Offertory, Communion, Presentation to Mother Mary, Lighting of Unity Candle). Most commonly found in Catholic weddings, there are also particular moments within the service which require music, for example Offertory, Communion, Presentation to Mother Mary, and Lighting of Unity Candle. There are certain songs which commonly fit these moments, for example One Bread One Body for Communion, so make sure to consult your musicians and church before finalizing your choice.
Unlike a processional or recessional, many of these moments don’t have a fixed duration. Communion may take longer depending on the number of guests receiving, while the Offertory or Presentation to Mother Mary may be much shorter than the length of a full song. An experienced church musician will know how to read what is happening within the service and adapt the music naturally in the moment. This helps the ceremony flow seamlessly, without the music ending abruptly or continuing long after the service is ready to move on.
Signing the register. The signing of your wedding papers is a lovely opportunity to play a few reflective music as you and the witnesses complete the formalities. Because guests are listening rather than participating, this can often be a good place for a meaningful song or instrumental arrangement, subject to your church's requirements.
Recessional. You are married! Pick an upbeat song as you walk back down the aisle together as a married couple and is usually one of the most joyful musical moments of the ceremony
How do we choose appropriate songs for a church wedding ceremony?
Start by double checking whether the church and pastor have a particular setlist to follow. The last thing you want is to pick all your favourite songs and realize they are not in the pre-approved list!
Then, ask whether your musicians have a list of church wedding-specific setlist to choose from. At LAVELY Music, we keep a separate setlist of Christian / Catholic wedding ceremony songs that you can refer to HERE
Based on our experience, we recommend these church-approved songs for particular moments in your wedding ceremony:
Processional:
Can’t Help Falling in Love - Kina Grannis ver.
Goodness of God
Bless the Broken Road - Rascal Flatts
When God Made You - NewSong
I Get to Love You - Ruelle
Praise and Worship
How Great is Our God
Love of God
Hossana
Heart of Worship
With all I am
Liturgical moments
Offertory : Lord I Offer My Life to You, Lord I Give You My Heart
Communion: One bread One Body, Here I Am Lord, Power of Your Love
Lighting of Candles: Thy Word is Lamp Under My Feet, How Great Thou Art
Presentation to Mother Mary: Ave Maria - Schubert
Signing the register
From This Moment - Shania twain
At Last - Etta James
The Lord is My Shepherd
The Blessings
Recessional
This Will be (an everlasting love) - Natalie Cole
Wedding March - Mendelssohn
Signed, Sealed, Delivered - Stevie Wonder
This is Amazing Grace - Phil Wickham
What should we ask our church before booking musicians?
Before finalising your church wedding ceremony music, we'd recommend asking:
Can we bring our own musicians?
Is there an existing piano, organ or sound system available?
Are there restrictions on secular or contemporary songs?
Which parts of the service require music?
Will there be congregational hymns or worship songs?
For a Catholic wedding, will the ceremony include Mass?
Do our song selections need to be approved before the wedding?
Getting these answers early makes the rest of your music planning much easier.
Choosing musicians who understand church ceremonies
When you're looking for wedding musicians, musical ability is naturally important, but for a church wedding, experience with the ceremony itself can be just as valuable. Your musicians may need to follow the order of service, respond to cues from the priest or pastor, lead congregational singing and understand when music should begin and end.
It means you aren't having to explain every element of the ceremony to your musicians while you're already planning everything else.
Church wedding music is one of our specialties at LÀVELY, with many couples choosing us specifically for their Christian and Catholic ceremonies. From selecting suitable songs and understanding the order of service to leading congregational singing, we help make the music feel both fitting for the church and deeply personal to you.
Some of the most meaningful wedding music comes from finding the balance between your story, your faith and the traditions of the ceremony you're choosing.
Planning a church wedding in Melbourne?
Explore LÀVELY's church wedding music and discover how we can help you plan the music for your Christian or Catholic ceremony.
