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Weddings


Peter Clark

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Guest Stanley Monkhouse

Me neither, Quentin. When you're dealing with couples and families and PCCs and organists and bellringers and flower arrangers and photographers and choirs and bride's families, it all gets rather overwhelming when people start being inflexible and citing employment law. God bless this mess.

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...the couple concerned had a price from the registry office...

Please forgive a brief moment of pedantry.

The regisTRY office is part of the County Court, where you get your divorce papers.

The RegisTER Office is where you register births, deaths, marriages and other PC things that hadn't been invented when I worked in one many moons ago.

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Please forgive a brief moment of pedantry.

The regisTRY office is part of the County Court, where you get your divorce papers.

The RegisTER Office is where you register births, deaths, marriages and other PC things that hadn't been invented when I worked in one many moons ago.

 

Is that your response then?

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As I read it, it was just an aside - and a perfectly legitimate one which I, for one, found interesting. I bet I'm not the only one who didn't appreciate the distinction.

 

 

Neither did I until I moved and found myself walking daily past the Lichfield Register Office on the way to the Cathedral.

 

It is not unknown for wedding groups to move en mass from the RO to the Cathedral Close so that they can have "nice" photos. There is a perfectly good park adjacent to the office. We even had one group move into the building. That did seem somewhat fraudulent!

 

Back on topic: at all the local parish churches that I have had connections with the Organist (not me) had the right to a fee if not required.

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As I read it, it was just an aside - and a perfectly legitimate one which I, for one, found interesting. I bet I'm not the only one who didn't appreciate the distinction.

Well I certainly didn't!!! :lol:

 

R

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It is not unknown for wedding groups to move en mass from the RO to the Cathedral Close so that they can have "nice" photos. There is a perfectly good park adjacent to the office. We even had one group move into the building. That did seem somewhat fraudulent!

 

That has happened here, last year. About 2hrs after the last wedding, I had occasion to return to the church and came across a young woman in bridal regalia with glass of bubbly in hand having pictures taken in front of the building!

 

Didn't even look embarrassed. :lol:

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At my last chuch in Upton upon Severn, I wasn't paid if the wedding party provided their own organist. I can't say I was that bothered - it seemed a bit churlish to complain about not be compensated for something I dislike doing when I didn't have to do it. One or two other churches where I've played took a different stance and levied the fee anyway.

 

A couple of recent weddings have had some rock anthem or other played through the PA system on the entrance of the bride. At the most recent occasion, the old lady operating the PA sliced off the music as soon as the bride reached the altar. No fade: nothing. I had to laugh.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just got back from honeymoon, and am back at the grindstone tomorrow with ... another wedding!

 

The couple on this occasion are having "Zadok the Priest" on entry and some mess or other by Andrew Lloyd Webber (from "Phantom of the Opera," I seem to recall) on exit. The latter will be via the medium of CD, but they asked if the former could be played on the organ. When the request came in, I was still busy getting ready for my own nuptials and couldn't do more than say (to the clergy, through whom all our couples communicate with me) that I didn't think it would work well without a choir, and that in any case I didn't know of any organ arrangements and in view of coming back from honeymoon a day in advance I would have only limited time to prepare anything "special."

 

Not only was the message passed on, but it seems the couple have acted positively on it - they have procured an organ-only transcription and delivered copy to church ready for me to play tomorrow. My Assistant has had a quick look and informed me that it will be easily read at sight, so no worries there - but I still find myself wondering, what effect will it have without choir, and moreover at what point has the music been truncated to allow it to make its mark but not keep them waiting at the altar...?

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Just got back from honeymoon, and am back at the grindstone tomorrow with ... another wedding!

 

The couple on this occasion are having "Zadok the Priest" on entry and some mess or other by Andrew Lloyd Webber (from "Phantom of the Opera," I seem to recall) on exit. The latter will be via the medium of CD, but they asked if the former could be played on the organ. When the request came in, I was still busy getting ready for my own nuptials and couldn't do more than say (to the clergy, through whom all our couples communicate with me) that I didn't think it would work well without a choir, and that in any case I didn't know of any organ arrangements and in view of coming back from honeymoon a day in advance I would have only limited time to prepare anything "special."

 

Not only was the message passed on, but it seems the couple have acted positively on it - they have procured an organ-only transcription and delivered copy to church ready for me to play tomorrow. My Assistant has had a quick look and informed me that it will be easily read at sight, so no worries there - but I still find myself wondering, what effect will it have without choir, and moreover at what point has the music been truncated to allow it to make its mark but not keep them waiting at the altar...?

 

Hi

 

I had a request for this for a wedding many years ago - I failed to find an organ transcription, so used the vocal score - I can't remember where I cut it - probably not too far in (possibly used only the introduction) - it was a small church!

 

Every Blessing

 

Tony

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This reply is a bit late, possibly...

I had a couple wanting Zadok.

They got the intro (big build up, obviously), then the vocal section on full organ, as far as the '...mon' of 'Solomon', which becomes a D chord (over A) then you can use the chord sequence from the end of the intro to bring it to a graunching close.

In the vocal section, block chords in the right hand for the tune and harmony, arpeggios in the left (in the style if the introduction), in the tenor octave. Gives it a bit of texture.

 

They seemed to like it, and it works if the bride waits a bit before she starts to walk (depending on the length of the aisle!).

 

Recently, went to a wedding where the bridal procession completed but the organist played the whole piece rather than pull it up or cut to the end at a convenient point. One of the trumpet tunes, shouldn't have been hard.

 

Today's wedding - Pachelbel Canon to enter???? It'll work, somehow.

 

Has anyone ever found a bride wanting Noel Rawsthorne's 'Fanfare for a Bride'?? (I'm still trying to sell it)

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Today's wedding - Pachelbel Canon to enter???? It'll work, somehow.

Yikes! I've had that a few times - I don't think it's a particularly good piece to come in to. What I do is the first 2 or 3 "variations" on the ground bass (when it's all nice and gentle) on 8' principals, then do a heroic cut to the final 2 variations (when it's quite a bit livelier) on Gt to 15th. This seems to get by.

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Many thanks for the link which includes a sheet music download - haven't seen that before. I'd better be armed with the thing in case anyone else wants it but I can't imagine it will sound any better (or worse) on the organ.

 

I was never too leen on the original, but this.......

 

Peter

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The little riff towards the end cobbled from the original put me in mind of Edmundo Ros' Wedding Samba, but it is not as catchy as that.

Now a bride coming down the aisle to a Samba would be a sight for sore eyes (and ears....)

and probably feet (hers!)

J

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There's a Zadok transcription by Christopher Tambling in "Ten more pieces for Organ" form Kevin Mayhew (published 2008)

 

For the record: I used W. T. Best in the end. Very playable, if certain bits of "padding" are ignored!

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