Posts Tagged wedding music
Wedding Ceremony Music – What Are Your Options?
Selecting the style of music you have performed at your wedding ceremony can seem like a daunting prospect. Searching online will reveal that there are a multitude of options to choose from, and when you aren’t quite sure what you want, it can be difficult to commit to anything.
So we have compiled an overview of your ceremony music options, including pros and cons of each, with the aim of making your decision a little less overwhelming:
PART 1
String Quartet
Versatile and expressive, a string quartet (or trio) remains a popular choice for wedding ceremony music. Suitable for both religious and secular ceremonies, string quartets can perform from a large repertoire of classical and popular songs, and it is common for them to accept song requests (as long as they are given enough notice – leaving it until the day itself is a little late!). They also add a fantastic visual element to the occasion, and will stimulate an atmosphere of classic elegance.
String quartets can perform outdoors at garden ceremonies, although they will require cover or shade, as sunlight (or rain!) will damage their instruments.
Hiring a string quartet for your ceremony will cost around $600.
A good idea if you like: ‘Canon in D’ – Pachelbel, ‘Spring’ – Vivaldi, ‘All You Need Is Love’ – The Beatles, ‘Air on G’ – Bach.
Harpist
Hiring a harpist for your wedding ceremony is another more traditional option, however like string quartets, they are suitable for both religious and secular ceremonies. If you have a romantic wedding in mind, a harpist will be ideal, as they exude romance both musically and visually.
The repertoire of a harpist is far more limited than other options, as they have a narrower range of sound and expression. They also have quite a soft dynamic, so are more suited to intimate ceremonies. If you are having an outdoor wedding, the harpist will require shade or cover to avoid damage to their instrument.
A harpist will generally cost around $350.
A good idea if you like: ‘Greensleeves’ – Traditional, ‘Raindrop Prelude’ – Chopin, ‘Moon River’ – Henry Mancini
Guitar (or Keyboard) and Vocal Duo
This option is most suitable for secular ceremonies, particularly if you want a relaxed vibe, and more contemporary songs to be performed. Duo’s can perform from a large repertoire of well-known pop, acoustic, groove, rock and even indie favourites. If your guests are on the younger side especially, this choice will be perfect as the audience will connect with and relate to the music.
If the duo is performing with electric guitar or keyboard, they will require a power source for their instruments, which can be problematic for some garden ceremonies.
As this duo will come with a vocalist, there are lyrics to consider as well as the music. Lyrics are a very powerful expressive tool, and can communicate to your guests how you and your partner feel about one another. Just make sure you consider the lyrics of your chosen music carefully – some songs don’t have the meaning that you initially expect them to!
A duo will range in price from around $500 to $900.
A good idea if you like: ‘I’m Yours’ – Jason Mraz, ‘It’s Only Natural’ – Crowded House, ‘If I Ain’t Got You’ – Alicia Keys, ‘Just The Two Of Us’ – Bill Withers, ‘Better Together’ – Jack Johnson
Jazz Band
Hiring a jazz band to perform at your ceremony will add a unique and sophisticated edge to the occasion. They can perform from an enormous instrumental repertoire, however a jazz band won’t be able to perform ‘conventional’ wedding songs that many of your guests will expect. Generally, a trio or quartet is best, and you have the option of selecting the instrumentation eg. saxophone, guitar and drums, or trumpet, guitar and bass.
If the jazz band is acoustic, there won’t be the issue of requiring power if the ceremony is outdoors. Also, a jazz band will also project sound further than most other groups (particularly if you choose to include a horn player) so your guests will be able to enjoy the music without struggling to hear it.
A jazz trio will generally cost around $900, and a quartet will start from $1200.
A good idea if you like: ‘Fly Me To The Moon’ – Frank Sinatra, ‘The Way You Look Tonight’ – Michael Buble, ‘So What’ – Miles Daves
Other Options (Covered in Part 2)
• Organ Player
• Wind Quartet (flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon)
• A Capella Group
• Church Choir
Wedding Music, Wedding Videos, and Copyright Infringement Laws
Every industry is affected by the restraints of music copyright laws and the wedding industry is no exception. With the increase in enforcement of those that commit copyright infringement, wedding professionals including wedding videographers, wedding planners and anyone else choosing or using wedding music in their projects are not exempt from paying large fees for all wedding video music, music for wedding videos and any other music they need.
The ease of downloading all types of music, and particularly wedding music via the internet and through both illegal and legal file sharing programs has gone up exponentially as the availability of such programs has increased. Because of the increased availability of copyright protected music, large music providers such as BMI and ASCAP have begun to prosecute in cases where people have not paid appropriately for use of the wedding video music, background music and production music that professionals and other individuals use in their projects.
While it is impossible for large companies to prosecute all violators of copyright laws, many wedding video companies, both large and small have already found themselves paying exorbitant fees that total well over the amount they would have paid had they legally purchased the wedding music in the first place just to settle copyright infringement issues. Just because a video is not intended for public viewing does not make it non-infringing to use popular music as a background music or production music, and public performance is one of the reserved rights of the copyright owners.
Wedding professionals and videographers have a tall order to fill. Not only are they responsible for filming the ceremony, reception and all other aspects of the wedding day, but also they are responsible either for choosing music that compliments the spirit of the day, the couple’s personalities and the high quality of the video through an appropriate and rich soundtrack of background music and production music. Weddings today vary much more than they used to; more couples are seeking wedding music and wedding video music that strays from the traditional and ranges from contemporary to cutting edge and progressive.
Regardless of the couple’s preferences, wedding professionals must either choose fully representative wedding video music themselves from the huge amount available, or buy the rights to the music the couple asks for from a music provider. Unfortunately, the cost of paying royalties to large companies in order to use both traditional and contemporary original wedding music in videos, ceremonies and at receptions is extremely expensive. Wedding videographers and other individuals that handle many ceremonies, receptions and projects per month might expect to pay thousands of dollars per month in order to legally use popular wedding video music, music for wedding ceremonies and all other types of wedding music.
And because every client is different and has different musical tastes, these professionals must make sure they have a very large and comprehensive library of wedding music to choose from to make every project unique and make sure it accurately captures the spirit of the big day and the personality of the married couple. Not every wedding videographer and professional, and particularly those for whom weddings are only a small part of their total business plan, can afford to exorbitant royalty fees associated with wedding music and satisfying copyright laws.
So what is the answer for wedding videographers that wish to both avoid copyright infringement and provide high quality and original wedding video music that does not take a huge chunk out of their limited budget? Many wedding professionals avoid the use of buyout music and royalty free music because they find often it does not offer the best quality background music and production music to fulfill their complex needs and satisfy their discriminating tastes. Although it is very inexpensive, buying the wrong royalty free music for wedding videos can destroy a wedding video, ceremony or reception for the couple and family, and the memories can be lost forever. However, comprehensive and rich pieces of royalty free wedding music do exist.
Wedding videographers will find selections of royalty free music and wedding video music that can be seamlessly integrated as background music and production music, and represents every musical genre, from traditional styles such as classical to more progressive and contemporary styles like light rock, jazz and even Hip Hop, techno and dance music. The royalty free wedding music and music for wedding videos in this large library will express the unique personalities of every couple and preserve the memory of their special day for years to come. And because all tracks are royalty free music, clients will pay a one-time very low fee for unlimited use of the wedding music, allowing them to increase their library regularly and offer a larger selection to their clients.
Tags: music, video, wedding music