While the Church has no official list of approved and allowed wedding music, there are some guidelines and suggestions that can help in the planning of music for your special day. When selecting the music for your wedding ceremony, it is important to keep in mind that the marriage ceremony is above all a sacred event. Secular music is never permitted under any circumstance.

SECOND VATICAN ECUMENICAL COUNCIL
MUSICAM SACRAM
INSTRUCTION ON MUSIC IN THE LITURGY

5 March, 1967

43. Certain celebrations of the Sacraments and Sacramentals, which have a special importance in the life of the whole parish community, such as confirmation, sacred ordinations, matrimony, the consecration of a church or altar funerals, etc., should be performed in sung form as far as possible, so that even the solemnity of the rite will contribute to its greater pastoral effectiveness. Nevertheless, the introduction into the celebration of anything which is merely secular, or which is hardly compatible with divine worship, under the guise of solemnity should be carefully avoided: this applies particularly to the celebration of marriages.

Once you have a wedding date selected, you should contact the Director of Music, and select a date to meet to discuss music selections. In addition to the organist, you will need a cantor to lead the congregation in song. Additional instrumentalists and/or vocalists can be used dependent upon the music selected. Rates for the organist, cantor, and any additional musicians can be provided upon request. If you choose to bring in your own outside musician(s) in place of the parish Director of Music/Organist, a standard bench fee of $200 will apply. All musicians must be approved by the Director of Music.

The link to the Wedding Music Suggestions page is designed to provide you with a starting point to guide you in your selections of liturgical music for your special day.

Also, you can use the Wedding Liturgy Planning Form if you have any questions as to what you will need to select for your ceremony. Within the above document you can find a form for both a wedding ceremony within a mass, and a wedding ceremony without a mass.

Finally, please find the parish wedding music Parish Music Wedding Contract. This can be filled out and dropped off at the parish office.