Pete Hartley – Civil Wedding and Partnership Violinist
Music for a Civil Ceremony
The music is just as important as at a Church wedding. The service will take a lot less time making the addition of music to a civil ceremony even more important to add substance and atmosphere. The order of a civil ceremony is much the same with the entrance of the bride, the signing of the register and the recessional at the end of the ceremony, so music can be chosen for each stage of the ceremony in much the same way, providing of course it is non-religious.
- Entrance of the bride
- Signing of the register
- Reception at the end of the ceremony
The definition of non-religious music is subject to the interpretation of individual registrars therefore it is most important that you contact your registrar with your choice of music before the ceremony; this will save any potential embarrassment on the day!
You can really have a lot of fun with choosing your music for a civil wedding, you may have a theme in mind for your wedding and the music will reflect this and your personality.
Religious Music and The Law
A prohibition of lyrics and poems with religious references had been in place since civil ceremonies were introduced in England and Wales in 1837. The law was drawn up to keep the ceremony distinct from church weddings.
Civil weddings are becoming increasingly popular, partly due to the fact that they are non-religious and partly because a particular choice of venue or theme dictates this type of wedding, but whatever your reason for a civil ceremony, the scope for musical variety is vast. The law states that the music at a civil ceremony must be non-religious so it may be that your personal taste is jazz, romantic ballads, musical theatre or operatic, the musical style is completely your choice so you can really put your own personality into your civil wedding.
If you have any questions about any aspect of Pete’s services please do call, email or complete the form.
Phone: 07860 605114
Email: [email protected]
