When Maximum Music started in 1987, we hardly ever played music for a wedding ceremony on-site at a venue. The ceremony was at a church, or someplace else and everyone arrived at the reception for the dinner and dance. Today that has flipped completely! It’s rare to NOT have the wedding ceremony at the same venue where you are having your reception. Today, we can tie your wedding ceremony music into your whole day.
To have everything all in one place makes sense when time is precious on your wedding day! It works to get everyone to one place and do everything there. This avoids asking guests to move around or having a big gap for photos in the afternoon.
The result is having your DJ and Officiant working together to bring your ceremony vision to life! This partnership of wedding ceremony music and the Officiant guiding your ceremony will lead to an intimate and heartfelt exchange of vows.
We often recommend live music at your ceremony. It’s super classy to have a trio play for you and your guests or a harp to welcome guests. Then they can also play a processional for the bride to come down the aisle. This is also a lovely entertainment piece that can spill over into the cocktail hour!
If live music is not your thing then let us play the music for your ceremony! We will work with your officiant to know all the cues for the processional, register signing, and recessional.
Your DJ should be versatile. Aim to keep it formal at the beginning, and then celebrate at the end with something fun like “Signed Sealed Delivered I’m Yours” by Stevie Wonder. Some couples want to have a Beatles theme to their ceremony, and we can do that too.
We tend not to recommend a microphone at your ceremony. This puts technology between you and your partner and will live forever in your wedding photos. Not many Officiants are comfortable using a mic and do not hold it so it picks up voices well. Lavalier or clip-on mics aren’t very successful, as they never pick up the voice the way you see it on TV.
If you NEED a mic, we can provide one! But give some thought as to who the wedding is for. It is for YOU. You are talking to each other, sharing your love, and making your commitment to each other. That is personal between the two of you. Your important friends and family will be seated at the front and will hear you perfectly. If your work and university buddies at the back can’t hear so well that’s OK (They get the idea, and frankly, they are there for the party anyways!)
Logistically, we tend to set up at the back of the ceremony so that we are not in the guest line of sight. Don’t forget to include us when planning with your venue as we will need access to power and a small table.
Want to talk about your ceremony? Reach out to us and we can discuss the pros and cons of a microphone, and pick out some great songs for before, during, and after your ceremony.
While we are talking about your ceremony, here are a few of our favourite officiants that specializes in ceremonies onsite at venues. Sarah Bunnett-Gibson, Enduring Promises and The Marrying Lady have been serving the Toronto wedding community for years and have always been a pleasure to work with!
