Weddings

Your Wedding Day at Fakenham Parish Church

We welcome weddings at Fakenham Parish Church. A marriage service is a public declaration of a couple’s love for and commitment to each other. Making your vows in this Church will be a joyful occasion and the Christian Church family here will give you every support and encouragement. If you would like to discuss marrying at Fakenham Church, please contact the Rector at the Parish Office 01328 862268.
For ideas and help with your wedding, visit the Church of England’s Wedding site.

The cost of a wedding in this church in 2012 is £340, and in 2013 is £350 and this includes the organist’s fee and one flower arrangement. Judith Smyth can be asked to do wedding flowers, for further information about arrangements and fees contact Judith on 01328 864061. Fakenham Parish Church has an experienced choir and bell ringers and you may book them for your wedding. The charge for the choir is £100 and for the bell ringers £100, rising to £120 each in 2013. Please click here to download our 2012 fees and our 2013 fees.

Wedding Evening
Wednesday 7th November 7.30pm is an opportunity for all couples wishing to be married in Church in 2013/14 to come to a special wedding evening in Fakenham Parish Church.
This is your chance to meet the Rector, bell ringers, organist, choir, flower arrangers and the marriage preparation team. This is an annual event held in the Trinity Room and provides an opportunity for informal discussion with the people who may be involved with your wedding. You will be given a wedding information pack and also have a chance to familiarise yourselves with the building.
Anyone who is thinking about marrying in Fakenham Church is very welcome to come and find out what we have to offer. No need to book, just come. Friends and families invited.

Marriage Preparation
Once you have booked your wedding with the Rector you will have individual preparation with him and will also be invited to a marriage preparation evening with other couples who are getting married at around the same time as you. Coming to this evening is an important part of preparing for your marriage and it is expected that you will attend. This is an hour and a half session when you are invited to step back from planning the wedding day and look at the wider aspects of your marriage and your future together. This is done in a fairly light-hearted way and couples usually find it both enjoyable and helpful.

Wedding Music
Chris Brown – Organist & Choirmaster – “There must be thousands of pieces of music that would be suitable for weddings. I list below some to which I have the music. Please contact me if you would like to discuss your choice of music or hear any pieces played on the organ”.

Entry Music
“There needs to be enough music for the Bridal party to process down the aisle, for the Bride to give her bouquet to a bridesmaid and to generally compose herself ready to start the service. You may consider processing to a hymn, which is particularly effective if you have the choir who can process first with the cross at their head”.
Canon in D – Pachelbel
Bridal March – Wagner
Arrival of the Queen of Sheba – Handel
Trumpet Minuet – Clarke

Signing the Register
“If you have the choir they can sing one or two suitable anthems otherwise I can play something fairly quiet and tailor the music to occupy the time taken to sign the registers and take photos”.
Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring or with choir – Bach
Movements from ‘Water Music’ – Handel
Panis Angelicus or with choir – Franck
To a Wild Rose – McDowell

Recessional Music
“This needs to be fairly lively and with plenty of volume”.
Wedding March – Mendelssohn
Trumpet Tune in D – Purcell
March – Purcell
Trumpet Voluntary – Clarke
Bouree from the ‘Water Music’ – Handel
Toccata from Symphony no 5 – Widor
Prelude for Te Deum – Charpentier
Trumpet Tune – Purcell
Nuptial March – W Lloyd-Webber
Marche Nuptiale – Ganne

“I am always happy to look at any music that you would like to have played and advise you on its suitability for the organ and whether I could play it! I am also willing to look at other music that I have with you or find it to arrange for you. I am happy to play favourite modern tunes but remember that the church organ cannot necessarily produce the same sounds that will be heard in much popular music and producing a rhythmical effect is not always possible. Do not be afraid to ask!”

Hymns
Suggestions for Wedding Hymns from the green hymn book in the church. You do not have to choose hymns or songs from this list, but it may be a very good starting point.

Choir
We have an experienced and well-trained choir. Having the choir at your wedding encourages the congregation to join in the singing which they may not otherwise do. The choir can also sing suitable music before the service and during the signing of the registers.

Pre-recorded Music
You may choose to have some or all of the music which has been pre-recorded. I list below some words of advice that you may find useful:-

• If you are using a CD ensure that you have a second copy in case of problems.
• Check that you have enough volume by playing the recordings in the church before the actual day of the wedding.
• Ensure that you have someone who is reliable in charge of the music and that person attends the wedding rehearsal.
• If the music is for the entry of the Bride, you will need to try it at rehearsal to ensure that it gives enough time for the Bridal party to process to the front and be settled. The music may need to be edited or faded if it is too long.

For more information contact Chris Brown – Organist and Choirmaster at the Parish Office 01328 862268 or email chrisbrown@fakenhamparishchurch.org.uk.