Help with wedding processional music
  • alb306
    Posts: 2
    Hi -

    I am getting married in a Catholic church in a few weeks. In speaking with our priest my fiance and I decided to walk down the aisle with our parents. From what the priest described the procession will be: Two lectors; flower girls (6 - walk down the aisle in pairs); the best man with the maid of honor; the priest; fiance and his parents; and me and my parents. The priest said one song should be fine. I love the hymn Love Divine All Loves Excelling but is that suitable for just a string quartet and would that be long enough for the processional? If not, does anyone have any hymn suggestions? I'd like to do something different than Trumpet Voluntary, etc. and more of a hymn but I'm open to all suggestions.

    Thanks!
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,160
    Welcome to the forum!

    Congratulations on your engagement! The plan sounds beautiful so far.

    I'm the forum admin and not a music director, so I'll leave it to other users to give their thoughts on the processional. Right now it's late evening for most of the country (2 AM+ Eastern), so there probably won't be many responses until daytime.
  • Andrew Motyka
    Posts: 944
    Love Divine, All Loves Excelling would probably both be fine with a string quartet (there's no reason they can't use the hymn accompaniment or vary it from there) and with length, if you use all the verses. It's a pretty long hymn, as these things go, and unless everybody really drags their feet, you should have no trouble with it being long enough.

    I think having a sung wedding processional is a big step to begin with.
  • G
    Posts: 1,397
    I think it sounds beautiful, the four verses should be enough, unless you have an extremely long aisle, and assuming the girls are of an age where they don't have to be coaxed.
    (We had a dozen children in our wedding, one flower girl needed to be dragged urged on by her partner.)
    I think having people sing but then having the instrumentalists segue into another compatible tune (we used The Call,) that is not sung, or even just more of the same hymntune sans words might be a good idea.

    I know part of what you are probably trying to get away from is the "traditional" bride glorification, but one of the great rationales behind having a schola or choir rather than the people sing the propers is so that the people can watch the processions.

    A wedding is an instance whenhte PIP really want to watch the procession.

    (Save the Liturgy, Save the World)
  • matthewjmatthewj
    Posts: 2,696
    Are you talking about having just a string quartet playing HYFRYDOL (the hymn tune that text is set to) or actually having it sung with a string quartet?
  • ClergetKubiszClergetKubisz
    Posts: 1,912
    I second Andrew Motyka. I am also a parish DM, just as he is. Is the quartet your only resource? If HYFRYDOL (the tune from Love Divine All Loves Excelling) is the tune you want, it should be fine performed by almost any group. Depending on the length of the nave, you may need more than the four verses of the song, so I would suggest having a backup just in case!
  • melofluentmelofluent
    Posts: 4,160
    You could actually pair HYFRYDOL to Huxhold's "Hear us now, our God and Father" with much more intentional text:

    http://www.hymnary.org/text/hear_us_now_our_god_and_father
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    Alb306,

    Congratulations on your impeding wedding, and on being brave enough to post a question as a newcomer to this forum.

    I'm going to go out on a limb here, and suggest that you could, quite intelligently, have a "playover" at the beginning of the procession, followed by the verses, followed by whatever semi-improvised arrangement of Hyfrydol the quartet could provide, until the procession has concluded. A really good string quartet could take a 4-part hymnal arrangement and move the parts around (just as any good organist can do) to accomplish the extension of the hymn. The usual solution, under the circumstances, would be to put the melody in the cello part, have the violin play a descant (of which there is no shortage) and have the other instruments work within that framework.


    God bless,

    Chris
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    Question:
    I love the hymn Love Divine All Loves Excelling but is that suitable for just a string quartet and would that be long enough for the processional?


    Answer:
    Yes. Perfect. Go with it.

    [Do not ask the people to sing. Do not sing it yourselves. Let the music, as you have intended, accompany the procession. The people are present to witness the procession. No reason for them to be staring at a page and when they should be witnessing!]
  • mrcoppermrcopper
    Posts: 653
    Good advice above, and good luck with your planning! Not sure, though, that a quartet playing a hymn will be particularly interesting. Here's a wedding processional written for strings:

    https://soundcloud.com/williamcopper/0572_the_bride

    complete with a flourish for when you arrive at the end of the path and turn to face your friends and relations. About 5 minutes, plenty of time for the flower girls to get lost or distracted; not yet published so your quartet can contact me directly for parts.

    William
  • alb306
    Posts: 2
    Thank you so much for all of your comments! I should have been clear that the hymn will just be instrumental so no one will be singing. So it would just be Hyfrydol. I'm getting a lot of push back from the string quartet and I think it's simply because no one does the processional this way even though it is what is advised by the Church. The other concern I have is that I haven't heard just Hyfrydol without the hymn being sung. Any other processional suggestions that are sacred in nature and suitable for a religious service?
  • irishtenoririshtenor
    Posts: 1,296
    I'd just tell the string quartet that you're not interested in their opinion on this, pushback be darned.
    Thanked by 3noel jones, aago canadash bkenney27
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    HYFRODOL sounds great played by strings.

    You are paying them - they have to accept what you want. They will have other things that they like to play. You are not playing them to play music that they like and think is appropriate.

    It's your wedding. A search for "alleluia sing to Jesus" shows that it is in the repertoire of many string quartets.
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,151
    DOWN AMPNEY (Come Down, O Love Divine) is another good choice. It could be used by itself for even paired with HYFRYDOL (Love Divine, All Loves Excelling). In either case, the judicious use of available descants on repeats might well add both musical variety and happy solemnity to the music. I have arrangements of both of these, if you are interested.
  • mrcoppermrcopper
    Posts: 653
    IrishTenor, and CB, the string quartet quite possibly is well experienced in this kind of thing and might have opinions worth hearing. If they have concerns, they are most likely musical/dramatic concerns and not to do with liturgy or the text of the hymn.
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,768
    I'm on the side of the quartet, who are certain to play much more interesting repertory: HYFRYDOL would work for a 40 second procession but even the guests would start cringing around the beginning of instrumental verse 3 or so.

    If you're having a problem explaining to the players that the church advises vocal music for the procession when there is to be no singing...did I already mention I'm with the quartet on this?
    Thanked by 2Gavin Jahaza
  • BenBen
    Posts: 3,114
    Richard,

    With descant and maybe an alternate harmonization or two, it could be very lovely, and not get boring.
  • mrcoppermrcopper
    Posts: 653
    Ben, if you are saying it might be possible to arrange a hymn tune into a processional for string quartet that is lovely and interesting: sure. Is it particularly easy? No. And will a string quartet hired for a wedding make such an arrangement for themselves for this service? Not likely.
    Thanked by 1Jahaza
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    I think the reason the string quartet is 'pushing back' is that the music will be quite simplistic for them, unless they come up with an arrangement that makes it more interesting as an instrumental. If you want, I could produce an arrangement they would be excited to perform, and it's a win win. PM me if you are interested.
  • Marc Cerisier
    Posts: 517
    Do not ask the people to sing. Do not sing it yourselves.


    I hate to be the one dissenting voice, but I quite like the weddings I've played for where the procession was accompanied by the congregation.

    I'm one of those crazies, though, that push the couples to shy away from southern wedding traditions as much as possible. We actually lose couples over our policies. If they do want an instrumental procession, the entire liturgical procession from cross to couple has to be one piece. They have to have a worship aide with music (we provide). It's especially beautiful when they follow the rite and the couple escorts themselves in along with their parents... Anyway, off my soap box.

    Maybe we could stand a little less staring, and a bit more participation? (I don't count staring as interior participation.)

    Thanked by 4melofluent Andrew Motyka bkenney27 Adam Wood
  • G
    Posts: 1,397
    If they do want an instrumental procession, the entire liturgical procession from cross to couple has to be one piece. They have to have a worship aide with music (we provide). It's especially beautiful when they follow the rite and the couple escorts themselves in along with their parents...
    Excellent, all of it, (it took a bit to convince Himself's mother that she should join in escorted by her son :oD,) but I still think one-of-a-kind processions like weddings, papal Masses, etc. are best and most appropriately observed by the Faithful.
    Seriously, why have processions, otherwise? to get from point A to point B?

    That's not rhetorical snarking, it's a real question, what is the purpose of liturgical processions? (not outdoor devotional ones, hopefully, everyone joins in the actual procession, the walking of those.)

    Is the procession for the benefit of those who process? just to remind them that they are leaving chronos behind and entering into kairos?

    If what is happening doesn't need to be seen, and if the faithful don't deserve a chance to watch it, wouldn't it make more sense to just leave the cross and Book of Gospels where they are at the end of every Mass, and have the key participants shuffle out from the sacristy or the pews whenever they get to church?

    (Save the Liturgy, save the World)
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    From a priest friend of mine -- and exemplified by the responses OP has received here....

    When did Christ create the sacrament of Holy Matrimony?

    At Calvary, when He said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
    Thanked by 1Gavin
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