MUSIC GUIDELINES FOR THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY

Mary Immaculate Catholic Church 2800 Valwood Parkway Farmers Branch, Texas 75234 972.243.7104

© 2016 Updated July 7, 2016

Dear Friends Engaged to be Married,

“The grace and peace of Christ be with you.” (1 Thess 5:28.)

We, the staff of Mary Immaculate Catholic Church, extend a heartfelt congratulations and best wishes as you prepare for the Sacrament of Marriage. During this time of your preparation, we wish to let you know that our prayers are with you and your journey.

It has well been said: “A wedding is for a day, a marriage for a lifetime.” Your wedding is the Church’s celebration of your call to married life. This brochure contains guidelines to assist you in the selection of music to enhance the spirit of faith and prayer during the marriage rite. Music is such an integral part of the wedding ceremony, assisting the words and actions done to express powerfully your own faith and appreciation for the spiritual dimensions of married life. You are expending considerable time, effort and energy in designing plans for your wedding. Careful attention to the choice of music (as well as the Scripture readings and liturgical prayers) can enormously enhance the celebration not only for the two of you, but for all who witness your marriage vows. This enables everyone to participate in a full, conscious, focused and spiritual manner.

We pray that God may dwell in your minds and hearts, with Jesus serving as the foundation of your new vowed life. The Sacrament of Marriage provides the source of grace upon which you can draw in your marriage to assist you in living the responsibilities of your hallowed state - to your respective families of origin and to the family you will establish together.

May Christ richly bless you as you welcome him as your invited guest and trusted companion. May God be with you as you move closer to your wedding day and bless you in your committed love in the years ahead.

YOUR MARRIAGE ... A HOLY REALITY

You have chosen to exchange your marriage vows within the context of a Catholic liturgical celebration of Matrimony. In doing so, you are expressing your belief that, as Christians, you see in the union of husband and wife the presence of God with His people. You believe, as the Church prays, that the love of man and woman is a mirror of God’s everlasting love, and that the union of the believing husband and wife is so holy a mystery that it symbolizes the marriage of Christ and His Church. Between baptized persons, the state of marriage is a Sacrament.

A Catholic marriage is spiritual, even sacramental, not just legal; sacred, rather than merely secular; public, as well as personal. The couple signifies and shares in the mystery of that unity and love which exists between Christ and His Church. So it is indeed a happy occasion to celebrate. However, this celebration is not only for the bride and groom, family and friends, but also for the whole Christian community in which the marriage takes place.

YOUR WEDDING ... A COMMUNITY CELEBRATION

The custom of inviting friends and relatives to join the bride and groom in the celebration of their marriage give us an idea of the communal nature of marriage. When you realize that you are planning the community’s celebration of your love for one another, a love that is to be a sacrament, a sign of God’s faithful love in this community forever, you are a step ahead of those couples who are planning their own prayer or a big step ahead of those couples who are simply planning their own show.

Because the marriage ceremony is a public act of worship, it should reflect the communal nature of the sacrament, with the guests serving not merely as spectators, but rather as participants in the wedding celebration. They are called upon to pray, to sing, and to witness the love of Christ in the Church and in society, to be signs of Christian love and support for the couple as they begin their married life.

It is therefore of utmost importance when you are planning this significant event in your lives [and in the life of the Christian community of which you are a part], that the focus of the preparation be to help those in attendance to pray.

MAKE YOUR WEDDING “YOUR OWN”

The community idea does not mean that you will be unable to make the celebration “your own.” In addition to choosing the members of your wedding party, you are encouraged to personalize the ceremony when you choose the readings, prepare the Prayers of the Faithful, as well as choose the people who will participate in the celebration itself.

You will spend countless hours preparing for your wedding: everything from the pre-wedding parties to the color of the flowers and the wardrobe for the day. Much creativity and care will be taken to make sure that everything will add to the beauty of this special day. Strangely enough, these important elements of creativity and care are sometimes applied to everything except the vitally important element of the wedding music.

PLANNING THE MUSIC FOR YOUR WEDDING

Music will add much joy to the occasion of you r wedding. Its primary purpose will be to help the people to pray. Congregational singing, therefo re, is to be pre ferred, even though a vocal soloist or choir may be very appropriate at certain times before and during the liturgy. Using the paris h organist, cantor(s) and even choir is usually the best choice to insure that thing s go smoothly, for experienced pastoral musicians are used to enhancing times of prayer by their service. As a couple, you have a serious responsibility to select music that fosters the Christian concept of marriage. It is important that you contact the Director of Music at least two months before your scheduled wedding date. At that time the Director of Music will schedule a meeting with you to assist in the selection of music, recommend and schedule any soloists or instrumentalists that you might need, and give you the fees for the musicians that you might wish to hire as instrumentalists or vocalists. If you have a friend or relative who will be providing music for your wedding, rehearsal time will need to be scheduled with the Director of Music in order to explain the use of the equipment including the microphones. The suggested fees for any hired musicians are contained later in this booklet. The contract that you enter into with the musicians is to be worked out on an individual basis, in line with the fees charged by musicians in other churches. Before your meeting with the Director of Music, decide which format of liturgy you will use and which readings you will have. If you have particular songs you want sung that you think are appropriate, please bring copies of the music to that meeting. All music, visiting musicians, and visiting vocalists must be approved by the Director of Music.

Here are some guidelines to help you plan the music for your wedding mass in such a way that it will not only recognize the presence of the community of faith, gathered to pray with and for you, but will also help them to pray.

INTRODUCTORY MUSIC

While the guests are assembling, instrumentalists, choir or vocal soloists may perform appropriate music. The purpose of this prelude music is to gather up and unite the thoughts of all present and to prepare them for the celebration of the marriage.

The purpose of the entrance music is to escort the liturgical ministers and the wedding party with honor to the sanctuary, and to gather the congregation into a worshiping community.

A congregational hymn may be sung during the procession, or after the procession is completed and the presiding celebrant has welcomed all and invited them to stand and sing together. This hymn makes the people participants rather than spectators. The selected hymn should express joy and be well known by the congregation.

THE LITURGY OF THE WORD

The Responsorial Psalm should be sung by the cantor, alternating with the assembly, which sings a simple response.

The Gospel Acclamation or Alleluia is also to be sung by a cantor and the assembly.

After the exchange of vows, a brief song which focuses on God’s presence to individual love may be used,but is optional. This song can also be sung should the custom of the Unity Candle be performed.

THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST

When the Liturgy of the Eucharist is celebrated, it is recommended that instrumental music accompany the preparation of the gifts of bread and wine (sometimes called “the offertory”]. This rite is a brief part of the liturgy and should not be over-emphasized. A short choral or vocal solo may be used which brings out the message of the readings.

The Eucharistic Acclamations [the Holy, Holy, the Memorial Acclamation, and the Great Amen] are to be sung in familiar musical settings known by the community. The cantor or choir may lead the people in these sung acclamations.

If using musical settings would keep the majority of people from participating in the acclamations, it would be better not to sing them but to recite them together, as these acclamations, as well as the Lamb of God, belong to all of the people and, as such, should properly be prayed by them. The Our Father or Lord’s Prayer is not to be sung during the context of the Mass. It can however be performed as a prelude.

The Song of Communion accompanies the communion procession and expresses our unity in the Body of Christ; therefore, this song should speak of a wider community love than do those sung during the wedding ceremony itself. Congregational singing, by its very nature, reflects the meaning of communion.

The assembly, choir or soloist may sing a hymn of praise and thanksgiving after Communion. Instrumental music is also appropriate at this time for lending a mood of silence, prayer and reflection.

CONCLUDING RITE

The dismissal is followed immediately by strong, joyous recessional music which may be a hymn sung by the assembly or choir, or an instrumental selection.

THE THREE STANDARDS

The Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops stresses three standards to be used in choosing music for any celebration of liturgy:

1. THE MUSICAL STANDARD : Music used in liturgy must be technically correct and of good quality. That which is merely cheap, trite musical cliché should not even be considered. When you consult with the Director of Music to plan the music for your wedding, you will avoid many mistakes and possibly embarrassing situations; this person has probably been involved in hundreds of weddings and can be most helpful to you. This consultation should be done well in advance of the wedding.

2. THE LITURGICAL STANDARD : The sacrament of matrimony is a public act, a sacred sign, an encounter with Christ. The music at weddings should serve to emphasize the sacred event, not distract from it. Music should assist all who are present to share the gift of faith and to join with the Church in prayer for the couple. For this reason, if you wish to use songs at your wedding, you should be aware that, while they ought to be as musically attractive as possible, it is the text [the words] which should be considered most important: each text sung at your wedding ought to be readily identifiable as prayer. If it cannot, then it is out of place in a liturgical context. While it is clearly possible that musical selections designed for purposes other than liturgical worship (such as popular show tunes, love songs and secular ballads) may also express some dimension of Christian faith and may, in some cases, help people pray, the practical fact remains that, in the vast majority of cases, compositions which are the most successful in fulfilling the purpose for which they were created will usually be only minimally successful when they are re-directed toward a much different end. For this reason, it is recommended that music of this type is best left to the family reception, where another dimension of the celebration prevails.

3. THE PASTORAL STANDARD : Each wedding is unique; the music at a particular wedding must be judged on how well it will enable this particular group of people present at this particular wedding to express their faith. If it is meaningful for this type of experience, then it is appropriate. When choosing hymns, do not overlook religious songs of ethnic origin. These are very helpful in reflecting your background and in involving your friends, relatives and family. FEES/OFFERINGS Wedding costs should be paid in advance so that no awkward “final business” should arise on your special day. Please make arrangements to finalize payments a minimum of two (2) weeks prior to your wedding date. Church usage fees should be paid when you reserve the church. Officiant offering (Priest/Deacon) and musician fees should be on separate checks or transactions. The fee and stipend schedule is as follows.

Parishioner Non-Parishioner Church Fee $300 $500 Education Fee $50 $50 Officiant Offering $200 $200 Wedding Coordinator $50 $50 Organist $200 $200 Vocalist $125 $125 Instrumentalist(Violin/Trumpet/Flute, etc) $125 $125 String Trio $375 $375 String Quartet $500 $500

These fees include music preparation, arrival 30 minutes before the wedding ceremony, equipment setup, music during the ceremony, and equipment clean up. These musician fees constitute a contract between you and the musician(s), not with the parish church. Additional sound systems may not be brought into Mary Immaculate.

The following list provides some insight as to what songs and music is appropriate in your wedding ceremony. While this list is fairly comprehensive, it is not exclusive. There are thousands upon thousands of classical or traditional wedding music that can be used in the sacrament. The internet or iTunes is an excellent place to research and listen to some of these selections prior to your meeting with the Director of Music.

Traditional Wedding Prelude/Bridal Party Marches 1. "A Rose Is Gently Blooming," Op. 122, No. 8, (Johannes Brahms) 2. "Adagio for Strings" (Samuel Barber) 3. "Air on the G String" (Johann S. Bach) 4. "Aria, Bist du bei mir" (Be thou near me), BWV 508, (Johann S. Bach) 5. "Awake My Heart with Gladness," (Flor Peeters) 6. "Chorale in A Minor," Adagio, (Cesar Franck) 7. "Concerto in D Minor," Adagio, (Tomaso Albinoni) 8. "Largo" from ( Xerxes), (George Frederic Handel) 9. "Perfect Love" (Sir Joseph Barnby) 10. "Rhosymedre" (Ralph Vaughan Williams) 11. "Serenade" (from String Quartet Op. 3 No. 5), (Franz Joseph Haydn) 12. "Serenade" (Franz Schubert) 13. "Sheep May Safely Graze" (Johann S. Bach) 14. "Sonata in G Minor for Flute and Organ" (George F. Handel) 15. "Toccata in E Minor" (Johann Pachelbel) 16. "Violin Concerto in A" (Franz Joseph Haydn) 17. "Water Music" (George F. Handel)

Traditional Prelude Alternatives 18. "Carolan's Welcome" (Irish Traditional) 19. "Concerto Grosso in D Major," Op. 3, No. 6 (Vivace), (George Frederic Handel) 20. "Courante" (from Three Lute Dances ), (Anthoine Francisque) 21. "Gymnopedie No. 1" (Erik Satie) 22. "Nessun Dorma" (from Turandot ), (Giacomo Puccini) 23. "Nocturne in E Flat" Op. 9, No. 2, (Frederic Chopin) 24. "Oboe Concerto in D Minor," Adagio, (Alessandro Marcello) 25. "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" (Claude Debussy) 26. "Romance" Op. 44, No. 1, (Anton Rubenstein) 27. "Sei Lob und Preis mit Ehren" (Johann S. Bach) 28. "Sonata in E Flat," Adagio, (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) 29. "Violin Concerto No. 2 in E Major," Allegro assai, (Johann S. Bach) 30. "Vocalise" (Sergei Rachmaninoff) 40. "Ave Verum Corpus" (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) 41. "Benediction Nuptiale" (Camille Saint-Saens) 42. "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" (from Cantata 147 ), (Johann S. Bach) 43. "Liebster Jesu, Wir Sind Hier (Blessed Jesus, We Are Here)," BWV 633, (Johann S. Bach) 44. "Praise To The Lord" (Johann G. Walther) 45. "Prelude" on the "Old 110th," (John Joubert)

Traditional Bridal Party/Bridal Processionals 1. "Air" (from Water Music Suite ), (George F. Handel) 2. "Canon in D" (Johann Pachelbel) 3. "Procession of Joy" (Hal Hopson) 4. "Rigaudon" (Andre Campra) 5. "Spring" (from The Four Seasons ), (Antonio Vivaldi) 6. "Te Deum" (Marc-Antoine Charpentier) 7. "The Prince of Denmark's March" (Jeremiah Clarke) 8. "Trumpet Tune" (Henry Purcell) 9. "Trumpet Voluntary" (Jeremiah Clarke) 10. "Trumpet Voluntary" (John Stanley) 11. "Wedding March" (from The Marriage of Figaro ), (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)

Traditional Alternatives 12. "Canzon V" (Giovanni Gabrieli) 13. "Coronation March for Czar Alexander III" (Peter I. Tchaikovsky) 14. "Overture" (from Royal Fireworks Music ), (George Frederic Handel) 15. "Promenade" (from Pictures at an Exhibition ), (Modest Mussorgsky) 16. "Romeo and Juliet Love Theme" (Tchaikovsky) 17. "Sinfonia" (from Cantata No. 156 ), (Johann S. Bach) 18. "Toccata" (from L'Orfeo ), (Claudio Monteverdi) 19. "Trumpet Tune in A-Major" (David N. Johnson) 20. "Sonatas for Organ, Op. 65, No. 3 (con moto maestoso)," (Felix Mendelssohn) 21. "Winter," Largo, (from The Four Seasons ), (Antonio Vivaldi) 22. "All People That On Earth Do Dwell" ("Old 100th" hymn) 23. "Dona Nobis Pacem" (16th century hymn) 24. "Hanava Babanot" (A Love Song), (Neeman) 25. "St. Anthony's Chorale" (Franz Joseph Haydn) 26. "Hymn Fanfare from The Triumphant" (Francois Couperin) 29. Wedding March (Jonathon Cain)

Unity Candle/Interlude Ideas 1. "Adagio" (Felix Mendelssohn) 2. "Andantino" (Cesar Franck) 3. "Arioso" (Johann S. Bach) 4. "Cantabile in B-Flat Major (BI 84)" (Frederic Chopin) 5. "Ch'il bel sogno di doretta" (from La Rondine ) (Giacomo Puccini) 6. "Clair de Lune" (Claude Debussy) 7. "Flower Duet" (from Lakme ), (Leo Delibes) 8. "Lento con tenerezza" (Enrique Granados) 9. "Love That Will Not Let Me Go" (Albert L. Peace) 10. "Meditation" (from Thais ), (Jules Massenet) 11. "Minuet" (from Berenice ), (George F. Handel) 12. "Minuet, Melody" (from Orfeo ed Euriduce ), (Christoph W. Gluck) 13. "O mio babbino caro" (from Gianni Schicchi ), (Giacomo Puccini) 14. "Romanza" (Ludwig van Beethoven) 15. "Salut D'Amour" (Sir Edward Elgar) 16. "Still, Still With Thee" (Felix Mendelssohn) 17. "The River Is Wide" (Tune: "Waly Waly," traditional English) 18. "Through the Eyes of Love" (theme from Ice Castles ), (Carole Sager & Marvin Hamlisch) 19. "Verset," (Leon Boellmann) 20. "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" (arr. by Richard Bradley)

Traditional Alternatives 21. "Where e'er You Walk" (from Semele ), (George F. Handel) 22. "Whither Thou Goest," (Thomas Dewey) 23. "Barcarolle" (from Tales of Hoffman ), (Jacques Offenbach) 24. "Pavane" (Gabriel Faure) 25. "Reverie" (Claude Debussy) 26. "The Call" (Vaughan Williams) 27. "Unconditional" (Will Ackerman) 37. "All Things Bright and Beautiful" (traditional hymn) 38. "Amazing Grace" (traditional) 39. "Ave Maria" (Johann S. Bach/Charles Gounod) 40. "Ave Maria" (Franz Schubert) 41. "Dodi Li" (traditional Jewish) 42. "Erev Ba" (traditional Jewish) 43. "Erhame dich" (from St. Matthew's Passion ), (Johann S. Bach) 44. "In This Very Room" (Ron & Carol Harris) 45. "Jerusalem of Gold" (traditional Jewish) 46. "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" (traditional hymn) 47. "Let the Bright Seraphim" (George F. Handel) 48. "Love Divine, All Love's Excelling" (traditional hymn) 49. "Morning Has Broken" (traditional) 50. "Panis Angelicus" (Cesar Franck) 51. "Sanctus" (Gabriel Faure) 52. "Shalom Alechem" (traditional Jewish) 53. "Simple Gifts" (traditional Shaker hymn) 54. "The Prayer" (Andrea Bocelli & Celine Dion) 55. "Yedid Nefefsh" (traditional Jewish)

Recessional Wedding Hymns/Marches 1. "Allegro Maestoso" (from Water Music Suite ), (George F. Handel) 2. "Brandenburg Concerto No. 1," Allegro, (Johann S. Bach) 3. "Brandenburg Concerto No. 4," Allegro, (Johann S. Bach) 4. "Coronation March" (from Crown imperial ), (Sir William Walton) 5. "Fugue in E-Flat Major" (from St. Anne ), (Johann S. Bach) 6. "Hallelujah Chorus" (from The Messiah ), (George F. Handel) 7. "Hornpipe" (from Water Music Suite ), (George F. Handel) 8. "Ode to Joy" (Ludwig van Beethoven) 9. "Spring," Allegro, (from The Four Seasons ), (Antonio Vivaldi) 10. "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" (George F. Handel) 11. "Toccata" (from Symphonie 5 , opus 42), (Charles-Marie Widor) 12. "Trumpet Tune and Bell Symphony," (Henry Purcell) 13. "Tuba Tune in D" (Craig Sellar Lang) 14. "Wedding March" (from A Midsummer Night's Dream ), (Felix Mendelssohn)

Traditional Alternative Recessional Wedding Music 15. "Badinerie" (from Orchestral Suite No. 2 ), (Johann S. Bach) 16. "Concerto grosso in D Minor," Op. 2, No. 3 (Presto), (Francesco Geminiani) 17. "Rondeau" (from Abdelezar ), (Henry Purcell) 18. "Rondeau" (theme from Masterpiece Theater ), (Jean Joseph Mouret) 19. "Sonata in G Major" (Giuseppe Tartini) 20. "Triumphal March" (Edvard Grieg) 21. "Variations on the Kanon by Pachelbel" (George Winston) 22. "Exultate, Jubilate" (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) 23. "Joy" (George Winston) 24. "Now Thank We All Our God" (Johann S. Bach) 25. "Now Thank We All Our God" (Sigfried Karg-Elert) 26. "Psalm 19" (Benedetto Marcello)

CONCLUSION

We trust that these guidelines will prove helpful to you in planning the music for this, the most important event of your lives. If you have other concerns or questions regarding the music for your wedding, we advise you to check with the pastor, family life coordinator, or music director.

Here are some helpful numbers and emails that you will need during your preparation process.

Very Rev. Michael Forge, V.F.…....…………………………………………………………972.243.7104 x50 [email protected] Pastor

Rita Ford…....………………………………………………………………………………972.243.7104 x26 [email protected] Family Life Director

Sonia Dimas…....…………………………………………………………………...……….972.243.7104 x28 [email protected] Director of Hispanic Ministries

Thomas Woods…………………………………………………………………………….……817.875.3416 [email protected] Director of Music

Again, congratulations!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

1. “Directives for the Liturgical Celebration of Marriage,” Liturgical Commission of the Arch- diocese of Louisville, 1200 South Shelby Street, Louisville, KY 40203-1200 2. “Guidelines for Wedding Music,” The Diocesan Music Commission, 3888 Paducah Drive, San Diego, CA 92117-5349 3. “Handbook of Church Music for Weddings,” Office for Divine Worship, Archdiocese of Chicago, 1800 North Hermitage Avenue, Chicago, IL 60622-1101 4. “Liturgical Music Today,” Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy, National Conference of Catholic Bishops, 3211 Fourth Street NE, Washington, DC 20017-1194 (1983) 5. “Music in Catholic Worship, Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy, National Conference of Catholic Bishops, 3211 Fourth Street NE, Washington, DC 20017-1194 (1983) 6. “The Ministry of Music, A Guide for the Practicing Church Musician,” by William Bauman, The Liturgical Conference, P.O. Box 31, Evanston, IL 60204-0031