Hello, everyone I cannot believe that we are now into October! It has been a whirlwind of a year so far and I have enjoyed every minute of it.

So in this Blog entry I wanted to discuss the Bridal entrance. Picture the scene: The aisle is ahead of you and at the top awaits your Groom. The first chord strikes and your bridesmaids begin the procession. In this moment what do you envision yourself walking down the aisle too?

One Step Closer…

In the past few years as my business has picked up I have seen trends in the music choices especially for the Bridal Entrance. At one point it was Kodaline’s ‘The One’ and Ellie Goulding’s version of ‘How Long Will I Love you?’ that reigned supreme. Then for almost a year ‘A Thousand Years’ was the song of choice. Gone are the day’s of the trusty ‘Bridal Chorus’ that we all made lyrics up too in the playground. It has started to make a come-back though.

WeddingDuo.ie cover ‘The One’

You can hear why ‘The One’ was popular. The lyrics as you head to the top of the aisle could almost be a version of someones vows. As with any part of the ceremony the lyrics are so important as they can resonate and throw further context to a particular situation. In this instance as you walk up the aisle, you want the music to accentuate your walk towards your future Groom. This is why I think ‘Thousand Years’ was so popular, I don’t think every single Bride I met was a die hard Twilight fan (or maybe I am the only person in the Country not to have seen the trilogy!?)

I have died every day waiting for you, darling don’t be afraid I have loved you for a Thousand years, I’ll love you for a Thousand more… One step closer.

The lyrics caught the imagination of a population and suddenly it became one of the most popular Bridal entrance songs to date. But you don’t HAVE to have a song. In fact instrumental can be even more poignant or in some cases more practical.

All eyes on you.

Your Bridal entrance is all about you, so if you choose instrumental music it means that the guests can focus on your entrance without being distracted by any lyrics or the performance by the ceremony singer. (Although to be fair we might like to perform but we know when and where to turn up the performance and when to ease off to allow for other factors to take centre stage.) Instrumental music creates a beautiful soundscape to make your entrance special.

‘Portuguese Love Theme’ excerpt

Here we have another popular piece of music that works in quite a few places during the ceremony but one of the best spots is the Bridal Entrance. That is if you are looking for a romantic start to your ceremony. The music you choose can evoke emotions in the guests, the groom and you so make sure that the music you choose fits with how you want the memory of your entrance be. ‘The Portuguese Love theme’ is a classic example of a romantic theme that is well known by some (If you haven’t seen the movie ‘Love Actually’ go and set yourself a date night and thank me later) and is a beautiful simple melody.

Timing is everything.

Going back to the chart toppers. The number one Bridal Entrance that I don’t think has ever been knocked off the top of the charts is the trusted Pachelbel’s ‘Canon in D’. It can even be performed on Traditional Irish instruments so is a very versatile and well-known music choice.

WeddingDuo.ie performing Pachelbel’s ‘Canon in D’

This well-known piece of music is popular for a few reasons:

  • It is a classy and elegant piece of music.
  • It can be played at various tempos and still be suitable for walking up the aisle.
  • The repetitive nature of the music makes for seamless endings.

Yes, some songs are trickier to finish than others purely because of their structure. It would be rare that you will get a full rendition of ‘Thousand Years’ or ‘The One’ because they are long. ‘How Long Will I love you’ then is a variation of a strophic song that is quite short so you might have to repeat it. Your entrance length will depend on a few factors:

  • How many are in your Bridal Party
  • How quick they walk
  • How long is your aisle?
  • Is you Photographer stopping the entrance at points to take awesome photographs?

Yip, these are factors to consider when choosing the best Entrance piece for you. These are also factors that us Ceremony musicians contend with and make every wedding ceremony different. This makes choosing the Canon such a great choice because the ceremony musicians can guage and edit the music to finish nicely without any awkward repeats of choruses or improvised bars to bring to a close.

We want to be different.

So not everyone has the same taste in music. Some of you want to make a personal statement with your music and that is totally fine. Personally I haven’t experienced any out of the ordinary music choices (yet) for the Bridal Entrance. These are often kept for the Exit (that is another Blog post in the future), but I have heard of Brides walking up the aisle to the ‘Imperial March’ from Star Wars, ‘The Lion Sleeps tonight’, and ‘Postman Pat’. You don’t have to go too leftfield to make a statement though. If you want a grand Entrance then a fanfare with Trumpet and Organ/Piano performing one of Purcell/Clarke’s/Stanley’s Trumpet Tunes or the ‘Prince of Denmarks March’ will certainly make for a fine occassion – especially if you’re a fan of the Eurovision ????

It will be perfect

I have only listed some of the popular examples in this Blog, there are so many pieces that would suit and you should not be afraid of asking your ceremony musician/singer to perform something that means something to you. Other ideas are:

  • Nella Fantasia/ Gabriel’s Oboe,
  • Can’t Help Falling in Love,
  • Tale as Old as Time (instrumental),
  • La Vie en Rose,
  • This I Promise You,
  • The Swan,
  • Meeting of the Waters

What music did you choose, or wish to have performed as you walk up the aisle? I would love to know. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.