20 Best String Quartet & Classical Wedding Songs for Your Sydney Ceremony

The right song on strings is where the goosebumps start. Here are 20 favourites, Pachelbel and Bach beside Ed Sheeran and Coldplay, in the order your Sydney ceremony runs, each matched to the line-up that plays it best.

What should strings play while guests arrive?

Something calm and familiar, so your guests settle in smiling the moment they find their seats.

1. Arioso, J.S. Bach

A slow, singing melody from a Bach cantata of 1729. It's gentle and unhurried, like a deep breath before everything begins. Best played by a Violin + Cello Duo: it only needs two lines, so nothing is missing.

2. Spring, Antonio Vivaldi

Spring opens The Four Seasons, published in 1725. It's bright and full of birdsong, made for garden and harbourside ceremonies. Best played by a String Quartet, which gives it all four parts.

3. Photograph, Ed Sheeran

Warm and easy to recognise. Guests often hum along before they realise what it is, and that little smile of recognition sets the tone. Best played by a String Trio.

4. Dreams, Fleetwood Mac

A relaxed groove that sounds gorgeous on strings. The cello takes the bass line and the violins take Stevie Nicks' melody. Best played by a String Quartet.

What music do strings play during the signing of the register?

The signing usually needs two or three songs. Choose pieces that feel reflective, and we'll fade gently when you're done.

9. Air (Air on the G String), J.S. Bach

Bach wrote his Air about 1730, as part of his Orchestral Suite No. 3. It's calm and reflective, the moment the whole room exhales. Best played by a String Quartet.

10. Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring, J.S. Bach

This flowing chorale dates from 1723. It's joyful without being loud, and suits church ceremonies. Best played by a Violin + Cello Duo.

11. Hallelujah, Leonard Cohen

A favourite for the signing. On strings it's instrumental, so the darker verses never come up, and there's rarely a dry eye by the last chorus. Best played by a String Quartet.

12. Shallow, Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper

Dramatic and modern, and guests love spotting it a few notes in. Best played by a String Trio.

13. Endless Love, Diana Ross & Lionel Richie

A 1981 duet that works as a duet for violin and cello too. We've performed with Lionel Richie, so this one's close to our hearts. Best played by a Violin + Cello Duo.

What should strings play during canapés?

Keep us playing after the ceremony and the music carries on through drinks and canapés while you have photos.

18. Symphony, Clean Bandit ft. Zara Larsson

Clean Bandit write with real strings, so this song feels right at home. Best played by a String Quartet.

19. All You Need Is Love, The Beatles

Released in 1967, it opens with the first notes of La Marseillaise, the French national anthem. A happy, easy singalong. Best played by a String Trio.

20. Viva la Vida, Coldplay

Built on a big string riff, so it sounds huge on four instruments. Best played by a String Quartet.

Can strings play a song that isn't on this list?

Yes. We play from a library of almost 1,000 arrangements of today's biggest songs, written exclusively by us. You won't hear them played this way anywhere else.

If your song isn't there yet, just ask, with at least 8 weeks' notice. Couples tell us hearing their favourite songs on strings was the moment that got them. A new String Quartet arrangement may involve a small music preparation fee.

Who are the musicians?

Red Soda began as friends at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. We're degree-qualified string players, and some of us have performed with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. With 2,000+ Sydney weddings since 2009, we know exactly how to read an aisle, and we've never missed a wedding we were booked for.