I had “Scotland the brave” as my processional the guests seemed to enjoy it
I always wanted to walk down the aisle to Adam Ant’s “Desperate but not Serious”. Unfortunately, I chickened out.
Our first dance, though, was to Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong singing “Bess, You Is My Woman Now.” (And no, we’re not African-American.) Garter toss was Tom Jones “She’s a Lady”. Father-Daughter dance was Sinead O’Connor “Dancing Lessons”. Mother-Son dance was ummmm I forget what it was, something by Rod Stewart.
Other than that, the only musical issue we had was having to specify to the DJ that no matter how much he was bribed by Oni no Husband’s family, he was not to play “Achy Breaky Heart”.
I think “The Sun Whose Rays” from the Mikado would make a nice processional. I also like “Brightly Dawns Our Wedding Day” for a recessional. (Both instrumental, of course.)
One of the songs we played at our ceremony was the Apocalyptica cover of Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters” - it suited us, but also didn’t stand out as TOO rock and roll!
We also played Ben Harper’s “Everything”.
We didn’t use it, but we did consider including the song “Down Together” by the Refreshments… it’s a little silly, but pretty at the same time.
I walked to “Ride of the Valkyries.” That’s what happens when you pick your wedding music the night before the big day.
Come to think of it, I think I’ve only been to one wedding that actually used “Here Comes the Bride.” Most have used Pachelbel’s Canon. Pretty, but a bigger cliche than “Here Comes the Bride.”
Trivia: “Here Comes the Bride” cannot be used in Catholic wedding masses because it is a secular piece, and only sacred music can (or is supposed to) be used in masses. I wouldn’t be surprised if some churches fudged this rule somewhat, but it’s what we were told when I was in a Catholic church choir as a teenager.
It’s at least discouraged in a lot of synagogues, too. Richard Wagner was a virulent antisemite, and his music was appreciated by Hitler and the Nazis, so a lot of rabbis would think it is not appropriate music for a synagogue.
We used “A Whole New World” from Aladdin to recess to. We processed to “The Rose” because it’s sort of Our Song. A friend used “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel, because it was “Their Song” and it was quite nice. So if your friend and his/her SO have a song that is “Their Song”, I recommend using it unless it’s horribly inappropriate.
Using the bolded argument really really pisses me off - Wagner gets the ‘oh, but Hitler liked him’ treatment, but not Beethoven. (Not meant to be shooting the messenger 
)
I’m getting hitched next month and our recessional is going to be to “For Once In My Life” by Stevie Wonder. I like it because it’s both romantic and upbeat.
My husband insists that “Baby Got Back” is our song, and suggested using it in our wedding. I told him he could have either the song or a bride, but not both.
Several years ago I helped talk a couple out of using Tears for Fears’ “Woman in Chains” as their first-dance song. Neither of them ever had realized it was a song about an abusive relationship, although it couldn’t be more obvious.
And now, a Public Service Announcement: “I Will Always Love You” is a break-up song. The lyrics clearly state that even tough the singer loves the man, she would “only be in (his) way” and in general, their relationship Cannot Be. Therefore, it is a terrible song for a wedding. This fact cannot be changed by repeated use in weddings. Thank you for your attention.
How about fun and classical? Check out Entry of the Boyars (be sure to listen to the entire sample).
I think so too, for the most part. If you had some older people coming to the wedding who did have memories associating Wagner with Nazis, though, it would probably be best not to play any Wagner at your wedding- Nazis isn’t really what most people want people thinking about at their wedding…
I think the “Wagner was an antisemite” argument doesn’t hold water, either. It would if you had to pay royalties for using the music and some anti-semitic heirs of his benefitted, but the music is in the public domain now AFAIK, so that won’t happen.
I think the real reason that “Here Comes the Bride” is discouraged in many synagogues in the US these days is that it is so closely associated with the “default” (read: non-Jewish) wedding ceremony, and there’s a feeling in the Jewish community these days that we shouldn’t be trying to be too much like the Christians around us. A Jewish wedding ceremony is not a “normal” Protestant wedding ceremony, and we shouldn’t try to pretend that it is or be ashamed of being different.
That fits in with some other trends in Jewish weddings these days- some Jewish wedding rituals that were dropped for a long time in favor of doing something more like what is done at Christian weddings have made a comeback in recent years for non-Orthodox Jewish weddings. For example, at my wedding (Conservative Jewish, 2003), we had a yichud (where Mr. Neville and I spent some time alone together in a room) instead of a receiving line after the ceremony. Before the ceremony, we had a bedeken, in which Mr. Neville lifted my veil before the wedding to make sure that my parents hadn’t substituted someone else for me under the veil (as happened in the Biblical story of Rachel and Leah). 30 years ago, you probably would have only seen those customs at an Orthodox Jewish wedding, but they’re becoming more popular at Conservative and Reform weddings.
Plus, if anti-semitic views are enough to get a composer blacklisted, forget Chopin, too.
So I showed the couple this thread and they are leaning toward **In My Life ** for the processional (thanks ElzaB) and **Crazy Little Thing Called Love ** (inspired by El Perro’s ** Queen recomendation). They also liked DeVena’s suggestion of ** At Last.
Thanks Everybody!
We used “Jupiter” as a bridesmaid’s processional, then an old shapenote tune, Heavenly Union, for the bride’s processional.
Not rock and roll, I realize, but it worked well.
How about* A Fifth of Beethoven*? That would be great.