maid of honor Archives - K.V. Fischer

The music is a requirement for every wedding ceremony regardless of where you have it. As the wedding planner, I never imagined one of my most difficult tasks would be finding the musician for the wedding ceremony. My dilemma arose because of the date — great for some aspects of wedding planning, but a major drawback when it came to the instrumentals.

The Musician

wedding, wedding planner, music, ceremony, River Flows in You, Canon in D - Palchelbel, bridal procession, bridal party procession, piano, organ, maid of honor, bride, videographer, pianist, singers, Christmas wedding — Organ, Our Lady of the Mountains, Estes Park, CO

Organ, piano, harp, guitar,…. your preferred instrument dictates your choice of musicians…so does the date and the church. The church typically has a list of musicians who play for weddings, but they may not be available, as was the case for us. What also surprised me was that very few felt comfortable on an organ.

A Christmas wedding precluded the entire list — they were either out of town, with family, or worked for the post office (the Saturday before Christmas is their busiest time of year). I then tried surrounding churches with similar results. Estes Park is driving distance from 3 major universities with music departments, but alas, it was Christmas break.

The groom’s mother was a pianist, but I couldn’t ask her, after all, she was the mother of the groom and wanted to enjoy the wedding, as she should. With less than a month before the wedding, I contacted Lisa, the Director of Music for my church and fortunately she agreed to rearrange her schedule in order to help out. Although she did not play the organ, she played a beautiful piano. She also agreed to come up before the rehearsal the day before to tune in with both singers. Thank you Lisa!

The Singers

We were blessed with the singers. Where some have trouble finding just the right beautiful voice, we had 2, both bridesmaids — my daughter’s former college roommate, Carleen, agreed to sing Ave Maria (a very difficult Latin song) as well as the Psalms, and the groom’s sister sang O Holy Night. Ave Maria filled the church as the mothers were escorted to their seats. Carleen set the perfect tone, her voice filling our hearts.

After the bride and groom exchanged rings, Sarah sang one of my favorite songs, O Holy Night. Our videographer, Jack Dorfman, did a phenomenal job memorializing the entire ceremony, including the music.

The Procession

I never thought about the music choices available for the procession — one for the bride and the other for the bridal party. Our pianist provided a list, but I contacted a former colleague, Cassandra, who not only had her master’s in music, but was fairly recently married (within the last 5 years, whereas I’ve been married 34 years) and she sent me a comprehensive list as well. Needless to say, the bridesmaid and maid of honor chose the music from Cassandra’s list: Yirma – River Flows in You for the bridesmaids and Canon in D – Palchelbel for the bride’s procession. Although our pianist did not know River Flows in You, she bought the music and learned it. Wow!

I love Christmas music, with Ave Maria and O Holy Night near the top of the list. Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee (or Ode to Joy/Bach) was the Recessional as the bride and groom walked out of the church with big beautiful smiles. Thanks to everyone involved, the ceremony was indeed a memorable success.

What’s your favorite Christmas music?

A bridal party miscount has some serious implications. Last week my faux pas came to my attention during the rehearsal dinner when my daughter gave the bridesmaids their gifts and there was one short. The groomsmen were fine — the groom handled their gifts, but I was the only one local. As the wedding planner, my miscount snowballed.

bride, bridesmaids, jewelry, the Stanley, wedding planner, wedding, unique, original, rehearsal dinner, bridesmaids gifts, gifts, Swarovski Crystal, sterling silver, Christmas, bridesmaids dresses — Bride & Groom Courtesy of Laura Grace Photography

The Head Table

The head table set up would be 2 short, however, with the long head table, that was an easy fix. On the morning of the wedding, after I returned from my trip home to make the maid of honor’s jewelry set, we started to decorate the tables in the Music Room. I told the gentleman in charge about the miscount, and he added one more place setting on each side. It was a little cozier at the head table, but among family and friends, cozy’s good, right?

Beautiful Bridesmaids Dressed to Perfection — The Wedding Party at the Head Table — Courtesy of Laura Grace Photography

The Flowers

Wedding, Wedding Planner, flowers, Christmas, date, florist, bridal party, bridesmaids, groomsmen, best man, maid of honor, bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, mother of the bride, mother of the groom, grandparents, flowers, snow — The Father & Uncle of the Bride

Traditionally, the bride handles the flowers at the church, reception, and for the bridesmaids. The groom handles the bridal bouquet, boutonnieres for the groomsmen, fathers, and grandfathers, and corsages for the two mothers and grandmothers. It was Advent, so the church was easy. For the reception, the only thing I had to worry about was the table decorations because the Music Room was already decorated for Christmas. However, even though the groom’s parents were covering the cost for the groom’s flowers, as the only one present, I found the florist and ordered them. Oops… .

The Florist

The florist was last on my list for vendors because I thought I had the bridal party bouquets taken care of with silk bouquets made by those lovely ladies who came to my rescue. Fortunately, my daughter had her heart set on fresh flowers — simple Christmas bouquets, or the miscount would have been more serious. Those silk bouquets did not go to waste — they were incorporated into the head table decorations (always the original intention, as designed by Carlene), but I was quite late looking for a florist; by now, the wedding was only 2 weeks away.

I had the same problem locating an Estes Park florist as I did the baker — expensive and a limited selection. Since it was easier bringing the flowers to Estes Park rather than the cake, I searched my town and got estimates. The timing made the florists shutter. The only saving grace was the fact we wanted something simple — red and white roses with Christmas greenery. I was again saved by the local grocery store who had a phenomenal floral department. Their prices were reasonable, and they did beautiful work.

Fortunately, when I called after the rehearsal dinner, the grocery store was open even though the floral department was not. I spoke to the store manager about my problem — I needed a bouquet for the Maid of Honor and a boutonniere for the Best Man. He wrote a note for the florist who was due to arrive at 8 a.m., and she called. The florist who did the original design and work was out sick, and I did not have a picture to send. It was boxed up so nicely, I didn’t want to disrupt it and the manager at the Stanley was kind enough to put the large box in their wine room which I did not have access to. I described it — even if it’s a little different (which it was), the Maid of Honor and Best Man could have something a little different. My close friend and neighbor picked it up on her way to the ceremony and no one knew the difference. That was a close call… .

What close call did you have?

Tag: maid of honor

The Music — A Requirement for Every Wedding Ceremony

The Musician

The Singers

The Procession

The Wedding Planner’s Miscount Snowballs

The Head Table

The Flowers

The Florist

The Musician

The Singers

The Procession

Share this:

The Head Table

The Flowers

The Florist

Share this: