Western weddings
editMusic often played at western weddings includes a processional song for walking down the aisle (ex: Wedding March) and reception dance music.
Music played at Western weddings includes:
- The "Bridal Chorus" from Lohengrin by Richard Wagner, often used as the processional and commonly known as "Here Comes the Bride" - Note: Richard Wagner is said to have been Anti-Semitic[1], and as a result, the Bridal Chorus is often not used at Jewish weddings.[citation needed]
- Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D is often used as an alternative processional.
- The "Wedding March" from Felix Mendelssohn's incidental music for the Shakespeare play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, often used as a recessional.
- The "Toccata" from Charles-Marie Widor's Symphony for Organ No. 5, also used as a recessional.
- Segments of the Ode To Joy, the fourth movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, sometimes make appearances at weddings; its message of unity is suitable for the occasion.
- At wedding receptions, Der Ententanz, a 1950s Swiss Oom-pah song known more commonly in America as The Chicken Dance, has become a popular part of the reception dance music.
