Favorite Wedding Music: a brief history
/We are all familiar with a number pieces popular for wedding ceremonies—but where did they come from? Below are the origins of some of the best known music chosen for wedding ceremonies.
Seating of the Mother’s
Ave Maria by Bach & Gounod
Bach wrote his Prelude No. 1 in C as a solo piece to perform on the clavier and almost 150 years later, Gounod used this music as a pre-written accompaniment to an improvisation with the text, “Ave Maria.” Today, it is a favorite at weddings to seat the family.
Ave Maria by Schubert
This is a popular choice for the seating of the bride & grooms parents, (now often extended to the entire immediate family). “Ave Maria,” meaning “Hail Mary” honors the virgin Mary and therefore motherhood and is often sung with the Latin text for the Catholic prayer, “Ave Maria.” Schubert’s piece was actually written as part of a song cycle of 7 songs about the exiled Lady of the Lake who has gone to live in the goblin cave!
Processionals
Bridal Chorus by Wagner
This tune, written in 1850 and commonly called “Here Come’s the Bride,” was written for Wagner’s opera Lohengrin. The bridesmaids sing this melody as the bride, Elsa goes to the bridal suite. It became popular as the bridal processional when Princess Victoria married Prince Frederick William of Prussia in 1858. If only trend forecasters were that good!
Trumpet Voluntary by Clark
Trumpet Voluntary is sometimes called the Prince of Denmark’s March and was composed about 1700. A Trumpet Voluntary, was typically performed on an organ using the “trumpet stop.” Charles Prince of Wales & Lady Diana Spencer’s chose this tune for their wedding in 1981.
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by Bach
This piece was originally intended as an accompaniment for a hymn. Bach used a melody written by violinist and composer Johann Schop and harmonized it. Since then, it has become an enduring wedding processional.
Canon in D by Pachelbel
This famous tune was written in the 1700s and largely forgotten until 1913 when it was re-discovered. Some historians believe it was written for Johann Christoph Bach’s wedding in 1694 and is still a beautiful choice for processionals.
Recessionals
Wedding March by Mendelssohn
Composed as part of the incidental music for Shakespere’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream and was used as a recessional for the first time in 1847 for the wedding of Doroty Carew and Tom Daniel at St. Peter’s Church in Tiverton England and became hugely popular when Prince Frederick William of Prussia’s and Victoria, The Princess Royal married in 1858.
Spring from Four Seasons – Vivaldi
This is from a series of 12 concertos and by far Vivaldi’s most popular music and some of the most loved music of the baroque era written in about 1720.
Ode to Joy – Beethoven
This the climactic moment in the final movement of his famous 9th Symphony composed in 1824 and is the anthem for the European Union. This piece is frequently used as a protest anthem and music for celebration!
Trumpet Tune – Clark
Often misattributed to Henry Purcell, Trumpet Tune was written for the semi-opera The Island Princess which was produced by Clark and Henry Purcell’s little brother Daniel Purcell in the baroque period.
Allegro Maestros from Water Music by Handel
Handel's patron, King George when he requested a concert on the River Thames & Handel supplied his famous Water Music Suite.
Hallelujah Chorus from Messiah
This is final movement of Handel’s oratorio, first performed in Dublin in 1742. This is a religious opera about Jesus Christ beginning with Nativity, Passion, Resurrection and Ascension. This jubilant ending is an ever popular wedding recessional.