How To Choose Your First Dance Song

Congrats, you just got married! Your wedding reception is the first time that you get to celebrate your freshly-formed union with your new husband or wife. Your first dance is a very special moment, and possibly one of the only moments you get to spend alone with your new spouse on your wedding day. Some people have had "a song" for much of their relationship...but what happens if you don't? 

If you don't have a special song with your special someone, making the decision for what to dance to for your first dance at your wedding reception might be overwhelming and frustrating. Here are 5 tips for how to choose your first dance song: 

1. Look through your personal music library.

Odds are, you have a fairly sizable music library, whether it be digital or on CD's. I am willing to bet that if you take a look through it that you will find a song that has always reminded you of your fiancé, or that has lyrics that strike you as particularly beautiful. Often, your own collection of music will be the place that you find the songs that are the most significant to you and your significant other. This is definitely the first place you should look. *A word of caution: listen to all of the lyrics before you choose for anything that might not be "wedding appropriate".*

2. Think about your shared musical interests. 

Do you and your fiancé have a love of Top 40's music? Perhaps you are both huge fans of a particular artist or band. Or, maybe your fiancé introduced you to a style of music or a particular group that you had never heard of, but now love. These are all great places to start from. When you think about the genres and particular artists that mean something to the both of you a spark can be lit that will lead you to the perfect song choice. 

3. Decide what style of music & dancing fits you best. 

Are you two the romantic lovebirds that would love to do a simple waltz around the dance floor? Are you more of the wallflowers that would be content just swaying in each others arms? Or, are you the life of the party who would enjoy choreographing an elaborate routine? Perhaps something funny and slightly self-deprecating would be more up your alley? When you can pinpoint what type of dance you are comfortable doing in front of an audience it will certainly help to narrow down your song choices significantly. 

4. Look on Pinterest for suggestions. 

Pinterest is a great place to go for ideas. There is an entire section of the website devoted to weddings. You can search specifically for wedding music, or for first dance songs in particular. Here is a link to my Pinterest board for wedding music. This should be a great jumping off point for you if you are still feeling lost. And be sure to check back frequently. I am always updating :) 

5. Talk with a wedding singer or band. 

Last, but certainly not least, ask a professional. We LOVE talking to brides and grooms! I personally love giving song recommendations. It is such a great feeling knowing that you have introduced someone to music that could really mean something to them. So, give us a call, or sit down and have some coffee with us. We will play you songs, get to know you, and help you to pinpoint what song will capture the essence of your relationship. We have SO many ideas...use us!! 

I hope that these tips are helpful to you in your search for the perfect first dance song! Always feel free to leave a comment below, or head on over to my contact page to set up an appointment so we can get started on this exciting journey together! 

With love,

Whitney

6 Tips for Choosing Wedding Ceremony Music

Hello everyone! 

I am so glad you are here! Today we are going to talk about how to choose wedding ceremony music. So many brides I talk to are at a loss for how to choose music for their wedding ceremony. They feel like they have to choose traditional music that might be either boring or something that completely doesn't match their personality. Or, they are just simply at a loss and don't know where to start. 

Luckily, I have 6 tips for how to make this decision easy as pie!

1. Check to see what type of music your venue allows.

This is very important. Depending on your venue, they might have special guidelines for the musical style, or even lyric content, of the music you use in your wedding ceremony.

Certain churches have a rule that the music used in a wedding ceremony must be sacred, as a wedding ceremony is also a church ceremony. Aka, no secular music. So, even if you had your heart set on walking down the aisle to Etta James' 'At Last', or to Bruno Mars' 'Marry You', you are out of luck. Others might not allow you to have instruments. All in all, it is very important to know what your venue will allow before you even begin to plan out your ceremony music. 

Also, you should find out what your venue is capable of sound-wise. Can you get electricity? Will you be able to set up microphones? Can you even get instruments in? All things that are important to know before you begin to plan your ceremony music. 

2. Classical or Commercial?

This one musical decision can sway everything else. Have you always envisioned having the wedding march played when you walk down the aisle? Someone singing 'Ave Maria'? Violins playing and maybe even an organ? You might want to stick with classical music, because it sounds like you are a super traditional bride. 

Or...

Have you seen yourself walking towards your hubby-to-be to a song that you heard on your first date? Having your singer-songwriter friend write a song especially for the two of you to be played while lighting your unity candle? Dancing out of the church with your bridal party to 'Walking on Sunshine'? You really should choose from the commercial realm, as you most definitely are anything but traditional ;) 

3. Decide what emotion or theme you want to evoke.

Are you and your fiancé the life of every party? Or, are you more of the laid back, go with the flow type? Have you always dreamed of having a ceremony that felt like you are Maria in The Sound of Music? Or, have you dreamed of a beachy wedding that just screams fun? 

Every wedding has a different emotion, a different feel to it. Some brides even have a very specific theme picked out. Romantic. Dreamy. Fairytale. Traditional. Eclectic. Kooky. Hipster. It can be anything, and your wedding music should reflect it. Knowing what feeling you want your guests to come away from your ceremony soaked in will help you to get down to business choosing what music you want to utilize to evoke that very feeling. 

4. Discuss the music with your fiancé.

While every girl, for the most part, has a pretty clear vision of what they want their wedding to be like, down to the table linens, you really should discuss the music with your fiancé. I mean, think about it. What are a few of the only things that a typical man might care about concerning the wedding: the food and the music. So, talk it over with your special someone. He might have some really great ideas :)

Which leads me to my next point...

5. Are there any songs with special meaning for you and your fiancé?

Do you and your man have any songs that mean something special? Maybe you want to include a song that the two of you heard together for the first time. Or maybe you want to include "your song" in the ceremony as a special moment for the two of you.  If either of you is musical, maybe one or the other of you has written something you want to use in the ceremony (that was what my husband and I did!). Think it over. I bet there is some special song that will help to make your ceremony even more you, and will help to tell your unique love story. 

6. Discuss it with your wedding musician!

Finally, talk it over with your wedding musician!!! That is what we are here for! We have so. many. ideas. And, we are just dying to share them with you! Whether you have several ideas already mapped out, or you have absolutely no clue what you want your ceremony music to be, your wedding musician is there to help you through it. That is, after all, our job. :D

So, there you have it, six tips for choosing wedding ceremony music that is special to you and your fiancé. I hope these tips will help you to choose the music that will make your wedding ceremony unique and awesome...just like you!! 

With love,

Whitney