Choosing music for your wedding ceremony (and the bits couples often forget)
A guest article from the team behind Gig Heaven – an international directory of wedding musicians and entertainers worldwide
When you’re planning a wedding and start to think about the wedding music, it’s always the evening you think of first: the band, your first dance, what will get guests onto the dance floor… will Uncle Dave get anywhere near the DJ?! Today we’re talking about ceremony music, which tends to get sorted in the last couple of months, often only because the venue or the registrar has asked for a list.
It’s a shame, because wedding guests actually listen to ceremony music. It sets the tone for your wedding day! Guests are waiting for the main event, they’re excited but quiet, everyone’s sat down facing the same way, and feeling a bit emotional as the ceremony gets under way.
At Gig Heaven people book musicians and entertainers for weddings and parties, so we see a lot of ceremony bookings go through, and the same few things catch people out again and again.
When you’ll actually need music
Most couples really focus on music to walk down the aisle to, but there are actually three ceremony moments that need music.
Guests arriving. Before the ceremony there’ll usually be twenty minutes or so of people finding seats, looking for the loos and working out which side they’re meant to sit on. Gentle music being played in the background brings the vibes and makes it feel like the day has properly started.
The entrance. This is the one we hear couples agonise over, and that’s fair enough. Think carefully about your timing here – a long walk down the aisle and a short piece means the music runs out halfway, while a short aisle with a long piece leaves you both stood waiting at the front while the musicians look for a sensible place to stop. Any decent musician can finish neatly wherever you get to, but it will help so much if you can tell them roughly how long the walk is.
Signing the register. So many couples forget about music here! In our experience it takes longer than you’d think, often ten minutes or more once your photographer’s taken their pictures and guests have had the opportunity to come up and snap pics of their own. It’s more than one song’s worth – it could be up to three or four tunes. Your guests might chat quietly, or the ones at the front who can see will watch you, but others will sit and listen, so it’s a good time for the songs you love that didn’t make your shortlist for walking down the aisle.
At the end of your ceremony, choose a song with a bit of lift to it as you walk back out together. You’ll be smiling and laughing and feeling over the moon, so choose something to reflect that joy!
We found the classical Spanish guitarist for our wedding through Gig Heaven and it was all super easy. She was fabulous (Claudia Dorado). Our events company had not been able to find what we were looking for and we found two options in about 10 minutes once we discovered Gig Heaven, interviewed them both and picked Claudia. ~ Claire, Trustpilot review October 2026
Choosing the instruments
The classic choice for wedding ceremony music is a string quartet – it’s romantic and timeless, plus string quartets sound wonderful and can play almost anything. But it’s four people to book, and with so many intimate weddings now, if your ceremony room is small a quartet can be a lot of sound for thirty guests.
For smaller ceremonies think about booking a solo harpist or a cellist. A harp fills a room without ever being loud, and it’s hard to think of much that suits a quiet moment better. The cello is the one instrument hardly anyone asks for, which we think is a mistake. People describe it as the instrument closest to a human voice, and when you hear one play something slow during the register signing, you’ll see what they mean.
One couple we worked with had booked a quartet, then moved to a much smaller room when their numbers dropped. They switched to a cellist on her own and told us afterwards it was the one part of the day their guests kept talking about, way after the wedding.
A violinist on their own can work too, but over a whole ceremony a solo violin can sound a bit thin without anything underneath it. A violin and cello duo, or violin with guitar, is a lovely way to round out the sound and create a beautiful atmosphere.
If you’re marrying in a church, have a word with the vicar before you book any musicians. Some churches expect you to use their organist, or to pay the organist even if you bring your own musicians. Everywhere is different, so have that conversation as early as you can.
Things to check before your wedding day
Civil ceremonies can’t include anything religious, and that covers the music too. Songs with religious lyrics are out. Instrumental hymns are a bit of a grey area and registrars vary, so send your list over well in advance and let them sign it off.
Harps are big – like really big! A concert harp is nearly six feet tall and heavy, and it has to be wheeled in, so if your ceremony room is in any way awkward to get to, tell the harpist when you first get in touch, not the week before.
Outdoor ceremonies are lovely, but instruments don’t much enjoy them. Strings drift out of tune in direct sun, rain can do real damage to instruments that are sometimes worth more than a car, and one gust of wind can carry off sheet music. Planners always talk about a plan B for ceremonies, but musicians add extra complexity to any last-minute changes.
Your musicians will need some shade and a proper plan B in case the weather does turn. A solo instrument can get a bit lost outside too, so it’s worth asking whether they’d bring a small amp.
It’s nigh on impossible to play cello or guitar comfortably on a chair with arms, and venues tend to put out whatever they’ve got, so ask for armless chairs – even better, have this conversation with your cellist when you book! And let your ceremony musicians get there early. Most will want to be set up and tuned before your first guests begin to arrive, which is usually about an hour before the ceremony.
What it costs, and when to book
Prices depend a lot on where you are and how long you need someone for. Looking at the UK harpists on Gig Heaven as we write this, most have starting prices between about £200 and £350. Cellists’ prices vary a little more, roughly £200 to £450. A quartet costs more, as you’d expect with four people. Booking the same musician for the ceremony and the drinks reception afterwards often works out better than bringing in two separate acts.
Summer Saturdays get booked up first, and popular wedding musicians are often taken a year or more in advance. If there’s someone you really want, get in touch as soon as you’ve got your date and venue.
Before you book, ask to hear something close to what you actually want. A video of them playing a lively jig tells you very little about how they’ll handle your entrance. See if they’re performing at any wedding fairs or shows you can go to, or check their social media for local events to hear them in person.
Pick music you both actually like!
Don’t choose your entrance music because you think you’re supposed to, or because you’re not sure if you’re allowed to ask for something different. Pachelbel’s Canon is lovely, but if the two of you love something else, most musicians can arrange it for their instrument given a bit of notice, and plenty of them enjoy being asked. As with every element of a wedding, the more personal your music choices, the more your guests will enjoy the atmosphere on the day and remember it for years to come.
Gig Heaven is an international directory of over 15,000 musicians, entertainers and event services available to hire for weddings, parties and events worldwide. The platform was launched by team behind Last Minute Musicians, operating since 2003 and an English Wedding member. With 20 years of industry experience, they built Gig Heaven as an international platform making it easy to discover and book trusted musicians and entertainers for UK and destination weddings and events.
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