Contents:
Wedding Venues on a Budget
Wedding Venues – Tips to Save Money
The High Expense
Wedding venues are among the most high-priced costs of a wedding so getting the greatest value is important. Needless to say you won’t want to sacrifice quality on the essentials, but a little bit of mindful organizing can go a good way in knowing how to lessen the expense.
Well known Wedding Venues
Having the wedding reception at a hotel that is very fashionable for wedding receptions, has the advantage of realizing that if it is widely used, it is most likely top notch. On the other hand, with high demand generally comes increased charges so it is beneficial to get as many quotations as feasible.
The Big Day
Saturday has historically been the day to get hitched, but it is getting to be more common to get married on alternative days too. This obviously has the benefit of being off-peak and very likely to be less costly. People who supply wedding products such as wedding music and discos are also very likely to be free on less favorite days of the week.
High Standards
Investigate their bar/restaurant meals first and also the friendliness of the staff members. You might also want to take a look at the bar prices and the cost per bottle of wine etc. Quite often a venue that appears good good value may put increased charges on other things such as the drink.
The Lowest Priced Alternatives
The way couples who had hardly any money used to do the reception, was to get family members to provide the food and hire a local hall. One more less costly alternative is to reserve a pub or restaurant to supply the wedding meal. If other people are able to eat too, this might not cost anything besides the cost of the meals!
All Inclusive Bundles – may be less expensive
In hotels where wedding receptions are regularly held, wedding bundles may be offered.
If you think about all the providers that are offered for a wedding day, a discount wedding package may give a considerable saving. This may include discount rates for over night accomodation for family and close friends to stay.
It is wonderful to have the ability to spend lots of cash on a wedding venue and get the very best of everything, but don’t forget that this is just the first day of lots of expensive days to come!
Wedding Musicians and Music
A growing number of people who are getting married these days require wedding musicians and music that not only fit into the setting of a church but also reflect the ambiance that the couple wish to create. So here are a few ideas for the options of music and musicians.
The Church Wedding
Selecting the music for a wedding in church may be quite simple. However, it often depends whether you decide on traditional music or go for a more modern choice where the Bride and groom select music that is more contemporary or means something special to them.
Perhaps the most important music is the Bride’s processional piece. The traditional music for this is the “Bridal Chorus” by Wagner also known as “Here Comes the Bride”. However, more frequently, couples are choosing pieces that reflect their own tastes in music which may include Pachelbel’s “Canon in D” or “Jesu Joy of Mans Desiring”, both of which are extremely popular. “The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” also makes a great entry piece.
You may find that you want more hymns included in the service than time will allow. These may include: Love divine all loves excelling and Lead us heavenly Father lead us. Of course if you want a lighter style of hymn for example all things bright and beautiful or morning has broken and make me a channel of your peace, are all appropriate.
The next decision could be selecting the music to have during the signing of the register. If you decide to have a soloist, he or she may have a repertoire from which to choose. However, the choir may sing a suitable piece or the organist play until the Bride and groom complete their task of signing the register.
The Bride and Groom’s exit, or recessional music is often the conventional “Wedding March” by Mendelssohn but it is also quite common to have Vidor’s “Toccata” – just to test the organist! Or a “Trumpet Voluntary” by Clarke or Purcell.
Wedding Musicians
An organist and choir are not the only option for a wedding ceremony. Couples regularly select a flute and classical guitar or a flute and harpist at wedding ceremonies. This happens mainly when couples decide not to have any hymns! This may seem rather unusual, but not all couples who have a wedding ceremony held in a church setting, also want traditional hymns. This is even more so when it comes to civil ceremonies, where music with a religious connection is often not allowed. Other options for wedding musicians may include a pianist or string quartet.
Whichever wedding musicians or music pieces you may choose, it is the Bride and groom who should have the final approval, after all, it is their special day.
A Royal Wedding is Great News!
In a world where there is so much sadness, it is wonderful to hear the news that William and Kate are to be married next year.
There is nothing quite like a wedding for bringing people together and enjoying the traditions that a wedding brings. The hen party, the stag night and the invitation list are just the beginning of a huge planning process that challenges even the most modest wedding, let alone a royal one!
One part of the ceremony that is particularly significant is the choice of music.
There is the traditional entry and exit pieces of Wagner and Mendelssohn, but couples are more often these days, choosing music that has a special meaning for them and often contemporary music too.
Also, it is not just the organ that takes pride of place, other intrumental ensembles are becoming popular such as a harp, guitar and flute, string quartet and even a rock/pop group may all be found in both church and civil weddings.
More information about live music for civil ceremonies can be found here.
Live Music for Civil Weddings
When people think of live music at a civil wedding it is usually a band for the 
“evening do”.
However, it is possible to have live music at just about every stage of the wedding day, infact, it will enhance the mood of the ceremony, the drinks reception perhaps as the photographes are being taken and also the wedding breakfast too. Why have a CD player when you could have live musicians?
Of course there are some consideration to take into account such as the amount of space available and the cost.
If space is limited in the ceremony room or dining area, a string quartet may be a little difficult to “fit in”, but a classical guitar and flautist will take up a lot less room, as will a harpist or solo guitarist.
The cost is of course something that must be taken into account for most weddings but live musicians for the ceremony and drinks reception can be a lot less expensive than the photographer for example.
Wedding Music Traditional & Contemporary
If there is one piece of music that is indispensible at weddings, it would be Pachelbel’s Canon in D – whatever would we do without it!
However, before the popularity of the Canon in D, “Here Comes The Bride” and the “Wedding March” were the regular “in and out” of the wedding ceremony.
Although the Canon is still regularly in use, and rightly so because it is a lovely piece of music, wedding couples are also choosing contemporary music from their favourite artists. This is great but can challenge the organist or civil ceremony musicians so it is a good idea to take this into account.
Youtube can provide a great starting place for getting ideas about wedding music.
Live Music for Civil Ceremonies
The options for
live music at civil ceremonies depend on three things, the room available, the budget available and the mood that you would like to create.
Some rooms that are licensed for civil weddings are so small it would be difficult to squeeze in one harpist let alone a string quartet.
Of course, if cost is not an issue, a string quartet may provide a very classical and sophisticated atmosphere whereas a flute and classical guitar will have a very wide range of styles and probably be less expensive.
The mood that the instruments create is also an issue and this will probably be what determines the final choice of the ensemble.
Civil Wedding Ceremony
My husband and I were looking for live music at our daughters civil wedding ceremony and because it was the first wedding in our family we wanted to make it extra special. We looked online and we were thrilled when we found two musicians who played the type of music that we wanted and suitable for the occasion.
They played flute and guitar and call themselves Carillon, and what made it even better, they were a husband and wife team who had years of experience in playing for peoples weddings whether it be church weddings, civil ceremonies, civil partnerships etc. so my husband and I know we could be guided by them.
As wedding musicians they were able to advise us regarding wedding music that is suitable for the flute and guitar and which pieces would and wouldn’t be allowed at the civil ceremony. They even sent us a free demonstration CD to help us with our choices!
On our daughters wedding day, Carillon proved to be very professional and friendly. The music was superb and was never intrusive or got in the way of the ceremony itself – everything went like a dream.
They began by played as the guests were ushered into the ceremony room and many guests later commented on how the music was wonderful to listen to and indeed to see these musicians playing live rather than a CD playing in the background.
Carillon played during the signing of the register while everyone took photos too and finally as our daughter and her husband processed out. I have to say these live musicians really did add a flourish and elegance to the proceedings.
After the civil wedding ceremony they played outside while the photographer took more photographs of our families and groups of friends. It really was a pleasure to have them play at our daughters wedding as it made the occasion even more special. We would definitely recommend them to our family and friends if anyone was getting married, they were worth every penny.
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