Processional song: How long was yours (in minutes)?

[goldenstar]

Hi everyone,

I''m trying to work out my ceremony music. How long does it usually take for the bride to walk down the aisle? Not in a church, just an outdoor setup with about 150 guests. I don''t know the aisle length yet but I don''t think it will be super long with my guest count.

Thanks!

 

[musey]

So I closed my eyes and walked the distance in my head while listening to the processional song... for me I think it will be a max of 30 seconds to get all the way to the front

lol, that''s not a very long song excerpt, is it?? Oh well.

I''m sharing the same processional song (The luckiest by ben folds, it''s about 115bpm) with the flower girls and my MOH. The guys will already be at the front. I think with those three ''sections'' of people (FGs, MOH, then me) it will take about 1:20 with our song, if we walk on the slow side of the beat, instead of a tempo. I wonder if that''s too short. Hmm. Is there supposed to be a dramatic pause between the bridal party and the bride?

I imagine it really depends on whether you walk with the beat or half, if that makes sense... walking on 1,2,3,4 vs. 1 (pause), 3 (pause), 1 (pause). What''s your processional song?

 

[musincy]

Date: 9/27/2008 1:06:26 PM
Author: musey
So I closed my eyes and walked the distance in my head while listening to the processional song... for me I think it will be a max of 30 seconds to get all the way to the front

lol, that''s not a very long song excerpt, is it?? Oh well.

I''m sharing the same processional song (The luckiest by ben folds, it''s about 115bpm) with the flower girls and my MOH. The guys will already be at the front. I think with those three ''sections'' of people (FGs, MOH, then me) it will take about 1:20 with our song, if we walk on the slow side of the beat, instead of a tempo. I wonder if that''s too short. Hmm. Is there supposed to be a dramatic pause between the bridal party and the bride?

I imagine it really depends on whether you walk with the beat or half, if that makes sense... walking on 1,2,3,4 vs. 1 (pause), 3 (pause), 1 (pause). What''s your processional song?

I think my song is under 2 minutes as well. I was going to use the same song for my bridesmaids and me. The aisle is ~75 ft. long, and I only have 3 BMs (no flower girls). If we''re not all at the end by the time the song is over, I''ll just have the harpist repeat part of it again or something.

I think "technically" there''s supposed to be some kind of pause or indication in the music that the bride is about to come down the aisle so the guests can stand, but I think I''ll just have the music get a touch louder and tell my mom to stand up when she sees me... I''m sure the guests will follow! People know how weddings work.

 

[jstarfireb]

I''m not at all sure whether this is going to work, but I have a song that''s 5:28 and actually a medley of 2 different songs. My ideal way to time things would be to have the bridesmaids walk during the first part of the song, and then I would start walking with the 2nd song of the medley, which begins around 1:33. My aisle is quite long because I''m walking from a farmhouse across a paved area and then on the grass over to a riverbank. I think it might take about 2 minutes to get down there if I walk slowly. I will be walking on beats 1 and 3, but the beats are quite fast, so it''s almost like walking on every beat of a typical wedding processional. The second part of the song could easily be faded out as I reach the riverbank. I *think* it will work if I time it right, and I could always wait for a bit after the maids have walked to start my walk timed with the song. Otherwise, I wasn''t planning on distinguishing between the maids and me...everyone will be looking from the beginning anyway. Oh, and I should mention that a DJ is doing my ceremony music rather than a live musician.