Who doesn’t love a good old hymn at a wedding? Whether you want to appease your aged Aunt, create a traditional vibe on your special day or just have a good old sing-song, we’ve got just the thing for you.
In this article, we’re going to take you through the top 40 wedding hymns for your ceremony.
We all want our wedding day to be perfect, but the wedding music choices can make or break the whole day. With thousands of hymns out there, it can be so time-consuming to wade through all the options.
So we’ve come up with the perfect guide to help you make your wedding ceremony as special as it can be!
Have a listen along to our Top 10 Hymns picks below!
Here at Encore, we have helped thousands of confused and frustrated customers find their perfect wedding music. With over 5000 musicians to choose from, we can help you find any genre or group in any budget that you need.
We have musicians all over the country to fulfil your musical needs. From Nottingham, to London, to Bangor, we’ve got you covered. So if you already know what music you want, you can start browsing now…
But if you’re not sure yet, let’s help you find the perfect music you’ve always wanted to hear on your special day.
- How To Choose the Perfect Wedding Hymns
- Most Popular
- Hymns Your Friends and Family Will Know
- Modern Hymns
- Traditional Hymns
- How To Book Wedding Musicians
How To Choose the Perfect Wedding Hymns
Before choosing your wedding music, it’s worth knowing why hymns are often sung and how they fit into the service.
Singing hymns at your wedding is a great way to bring together family and friends. Singing together is something not many people do after school so it’s a great way to get everyone feeling relaxed and happy. For the oldies in the room, singing hymns can also conjure up memories of past weddings and moments of happiness.
How do they fit within the service? Well, weddings in churches are religious ceremonies so having religious music (like hymns) is usually expected. Non-religious music is often allowed as long as you discuss it with the minister marrying you first. Usually, couples pick two or three hymns for the ceremony. One after the welcome from the vicar; the second after the signing of the register and a final closing hymn before the concluding blessing.
Do You Have Any Favourites?
This seems obvious, but it’s easily overlooked in all the worry about pleasing your guests. At the end of the day, your wedding day should be a joyful experience for you.
If you know any hymns yourself, chances are they will be known by the minister and musicians. Ideal! Less stress for everybody involved. By using your own favourites you will be able to conjure up a dreamy, nostalgic atmosphere on your special day.
Yes, Minister?
If you can’t remember any at all, it might be worth asking the minister who will be marrying you. They will definitely know some hymns…
I’m sure they will be able to recommend hymns of a certain style or tradition to make your wedding music that much more personal.
Family and Friends
The next most obvious place to do your hymn research is with family. Your parents and grandparents will probably have grown up singing hymns and song in school assembly, so they will hopefully have a few absolute corkers up their sleeve.
They will also love being able to give a bit of input into your day. The same goes for any musical friends you might have.
Remember that slightly random friend, the one who got super-hyped about singing hymns… Of course. Your nearest bank of musical knowledge has arrived. Give them a call!
If the minister gives you a huge daunting list, it may be helpful to take their suggestions to family and friends to help narrow things down.
Who leads the hymns?
Some ministers will offer their vocal services, but most couples arrange for professional musicians to handle the hymns. This can easily be the difference between a school assembly ‘mumbling into your toes’ situation and a raucous sing-song. The traditional, tried-and-tested solution is an organist – who can bash out a huge amount of volume, giving even the most tone-deaf guests the confidence to belt at the top of their voice without fear of others listening in.
Some less traditional options include an acoustic guitarist or pop band. For the ultimate, high energy sound you could even go all out and hire a choir or gospel choir to provide a massive boost to the vocal line.
Looking to save on costs? If you’re hiring musicians for elsewhere in the wedding day, why not check if they can also lead the hymns?
If you are still struggling – fret no longer! We will get you out of this crazy hymnnastics nightmare.
Hire Birmingham-based Encore organist Paul Carr to get your guests singing at the top of their lungs in your wedding ceremony.
Most Popular
Here at Encore, we love to please the crowd. So we’ve compiled a list of the most popular hymns that everyone loves. Whether you want a strictly traditional wedding or want to be a bit more creative, these hymns will go down an absolute treat.
Why not listen along with our Spotify playlist as you read, and your big day will sparkle before your eyes (and ears?)…
Hiring an Encore organist one of our huge selection of wedding musicians is a great way to make your hymns come alive. But for now, check out these popular hymns:
- Amazing Grace
- Come Down O Love Divine
- Dear Lord and Father of Mankind
- Great Is Thy Faithfulness
- Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer
- He Who Would Valiant Be
- Lord Of Earth And All Creation
- Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
- O Praise Ye The Lord!
- Praise My Soul the King Of Heaven
- Tell Out My Soul
- When I Survey, The Wondrous Cross
Hymns Your Friends and Family Will Know
Get your congregation feeling at home with this list of hymns your friends and family will know. From primary school bangers to patriotic anthems, we’ve got it all here:
- Jerusalem
- Lord of All Hopefulness
- All Things Bright and Beautiful
- Be Still For The Presence Of The Lord
- For The Beauty Of The Earth
- How Great Thou art
- All People That On Earth Do Dwell
- Lead us Heavenly Father
- O Worship the King
- Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
- The Grace Of Life Is Theirs
- To God Be The Glory
Modern Hymns
If you aren’t one for the traditional type of hymn then these more modern ones can add a musical spark to your wedding ceremony.
- Give Me Joy in My Heart
- Oh Happy Day
- Morning Has Broken
- Shine Jesus Shine
Book Encore’s energetic choir Uplifted Voice Choir to get your family and friends up and dancing!
Traditional Hymns
Our comprehensive list of traditional hymns will get your patriotic, nostalgic feels going. These old school bangers are guaranteed to lift your spirits on your big day, carrying you right through to your wedding reception.
Listen to our Spotify playlist to hear all of our recommendations in all their glory!
- As I Kneel Before You
- As Man And Woman We Were Made
- At Cana’s Wedding Long Ago
- At The Name Of Jesus
- Come To A Wedding
- God In The Planning And Purpose Of Life
- I Danced In The Morning
- I Vow To Thee My Country
- Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace
- That Human Life Might Richer Be
- The King Of Love My Shepherd Is
- The Lord’s My Shepherd (Crimond tune)
Maybe you don’t like organs? That’s okay! How about hiring a solo singer like Sarah Munro who can lead everyone in your favourite hymns instead…
How To Book Wedding Musicians
Now you know what music you want at your wedding, how do you go about getting musicians to play it? What musicians do I need? And how much will it cost?
Don’t worry, yet again we are here to help… gosh we’re good to you, aren’t we! 😉
The musicians you will likely be wanting to hire are organists, choirs, and singers. These musicians will be able to lead a room full of people singing hymns together, it just depends on the vibe of the music you want.
If you hire individuals like organists, pianists, or singers, you will be looking at a price range of £100-£300. But for groups like a choir or even a function band, you will be paying around £300-£1000. Again it’s totally up to you, it just depends what kind of vibe you are after.
DON’T FORGET: Make sure you consider the facilities of the church. It’s no good booking an organist if there is no organ for them to play!
So where do I find these musicians? Encore’s nationwide family of musicians can create any musical scenario you want anywhere. So, get browsing now…