What is the BEST Alternative Music for My Woodland Wedding? 

Your wedding is a momentous day to share together. If you are an outdoor fan, like us, then a woodland is the perfect backdrop for your wedding day. Incorporating nature in your wedding day adds a different vibe and can make your wedding day extraordinary, otherworldly, mythical and one hundred per cent spellbinding. 

There are countless woodland locations to choose from. If as a child you adored Winnie the Pooh, why not step inside the incredible world of A. A. Milne and celebrate your marriage in the real Hundred Acre Woods (Ashdown Forest) https://www.visitengland.com/experience/play-pooh-sticks-ashdown-forest? Or jet across the world to Oxbow Regional Park in Oregon https://www.oregonmetro.gov/parks/oxbow-regional-park, one of the woodland scenes from Twilight, the popular vampire series. Whatever you love, whether it’s the ‘supernatural’, or the ‘super cute’, there’s a charming wedding woodland location, just for you.  

We’re here to help you choose exquisite music to include in your wedding playlist that can also be performed on the harp. We have carefully selected every song to ensure you have a playlist that is ‘cliché free’ and not over played at weddings. 

We guarantee there are songs here that will make you smile, laugh and even cry (in a positive way!). But most importantly, this extensive list of music will enable you to really envision your wedding and add to the anticipation, adventure and excitement. As musicians and lovers of all things weddings, we truly hope that you’ll find a song you will fall in love with. 

We are delighted to be sharing this adventure with you and helping to plan your wedding music. So pull out your wedding planning journal, sit back and enjoy listening to our most favourite alternative songs and musical pieces which also sound wondrous performed as harp duets or with harps and voices. 

What are the best alternative songs for my Woodland Wedding Ceremony?

Arrival of your guests

As your guests arrive and take their seats in the ceremony area under a canopy of trees, there is nothing more spellbinding than the mellow sound of two harps drifting through the foliage. Instrumental pieces played by a harpist (without lyrics) is a wonderful choice for light background music. 

1. River Flows in You – by Yiruma https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7maJOI3QMu0 
2. Primavera (Spring) – by Ludovico Einaudi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYEooPeyz5M 
3. The Earth Prelude – by Ludovico Einaudi https://youtu.be/9X6sGu8oTiQ

Or, if you prefer music with meaningful lyrics, these beautiful songs are wedding worthy…

1. This Is It – by Scotty McCreery https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JSd4KfG1vo 
2. 10,000 Hours – by Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2E71oe0aSM 
3. Just Like Heaven – by The Cure https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3nPiBai66M 

walking up the aisle (processional) 

Choosing a ‘walking up the aisle song’ to be played on the harps can perhaps seem arduous, especially if you are trying to find a song that is unique. The harps are versatile instruments and can be used to perform many different genres. For us, these three songs really stand out. 

1. Flightless Bird – by Iron & Wine https://youtu.be/xwZNGaMrwcE
2. Speechless – by Dan + Shay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UoP9ABJXGE 
3. Kiss the Rain – by Yiruma https://youtu.be/so6ExplQlaY

signing the register / certificate 

As you and your witnesses sign the official register, selecting two or three songs to entertain your guests is a lovely and thoughtful touch. 

1. Nine Million Bicycles – by Katie Melua https://youtu.be/eHQG6-DojVw 
2. 500 Miles – cover by Sleeping At Last https://youtu.be/muLfJWOfqGQ 
3. Nothing Else Matters – by Metallica https://youtu.be/tAGnKpE4NCIb 

walking back down the aisle together (recessional)

As you and your partner walk back down the aisle to the applause of your guests, one of these songs will set a vibrant and upbeat tone for the rest of your wedding day…

1. Summer Nights – from the Grease Soundtrack https://youtu.be/ZW0DfsCzfq4 
2. Everything Has Changed – by Taylor Swift https://youtu.be/w1oM3kQpXRo
3. You’ve Got the Love – by Florence + The Machine https://youtu.be/PQZhN65vq9E 

What are the Top 10 Alternative Songs for my Woodland Wedding Drinks Reception?

A woodland wedding is such a romantic, magical and breathtaking setting for your special day. These songs are perfect alternatives to the popular ‘Thinking Out Loud’ and ‘A Thousand Years’ covers. Plus, they sound stunning sung and played on the harp. They not only set the right tone, but are also emotional, charming and different. 

1. Sweet Disposition – by The Temper Trap https://youtu.be/jxKjOOR9sPU 
2. Young and Beautiful – by Lana Del Rey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_1aF54DO60
3. Maps – by Yeah Yeah Yeahs https://youtu.be/oIIxlgcuQRU 
4. Fade Into You – by Emmy the Great https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2Iv0aYZehc
5. Bubbly – by Colbie Caillat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWGqoCNbsvM 
6. Promise – by Ben Howard https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kbs9RHIb7s 
7. re: Stacks – by Bon Iver https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhDnyPsQsB0 
8. The Dress Looks Nice on You – Sufjan Stevens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OkX_r032PM
9. Higher Love – by James Vincent Mc Morrow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c__noWWtdZg
10. Wild Love (Acoustic) – by James Bay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRY-riMrnMs 

What are the Top 10 Alternative Songs for my Woodland Wedding Breakfast (Evening Meal)?

Whether you’re dining outdoors under the stars, cosying up in a tipi in a woodland clearing, or are opting for a lazy summer picnic, these top ten songs have just the right amount of romance and emotion to set your heart soaring. Love is in the air, ‘je t’aime’. 

1. Love song – by The Cure https://youtu.be/ks_qOI0lzho
2. Fix You – by Coldplay https://youtu.be/k4V3Mo61fJM
3. What is Life – by George Harrison https://youtu.be/fiH9edd25Bc
4. I Wanna Be Yours – by The Arctic Monkeys https://youtu.be/fJLQCf4mFP0
5. I’ll be Your Mirror – by Velvet Underground https://youtu.be/dMeZCPbM6bA
6. Thank You For Your Love – by Anthony and The Johnsons https://youtu.be/I-Xdm5yS6PY
7. Sea of Love – by Cat Power https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbMeAOTPJzM
8. Scrapbook – The Rocket Summer https://youtu.be/a5XvlMKEXHw
9. Unison – by Björk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgEhj4edj4Y 
10. 100 Suns – by Thirty Seconds to Mars https://youtu.be/2agKeLtf-EI

If you love reading this blog as much as we enjoyed writing it, why not have a read of our guest blog for Pretty and Punk ‘Top 100 music tracks for your alternative wedding’… https://www.prettyandpunk.co.uk/voice.php?page=1&blog=61724589 

If you need more wedding music inspiration, why not drop us a message?

Adel and Karina x

Photography by Louis Gorringe Photography