Here I will address the questions: “What happens about music?” and “How long does the service take?”
I am looking at these two questions together as they impact on each other.
Obviously, there are great variances depending on where you elect to have your funeral service.
The short answer for a funeral service slot at the crematorium (usually 40 minutes), is that you have a 20 minute service. Normally, people choose up to three tracks of pre-recorded music, one to go into the chapel, one to leave and the one in the middle. The middle piece could be a hymn or popular music to listen to (for reflection on the deceased’s life) or even to sing along with.
Now for more details of both crematorium services and church services.
Full Service at the Crematorium
When a full service is held at a crematorium (whether it is religiously based or not) a time slot is allocated by the bereavement authority.
In the past, a standard slot was 30 minutes for a piece of music in entry and one on exit and a 15 minute service. The problem was, if the service did not start on time or if it ran over or the mourners did not leave promptly at the end, a backlog was created. Families and crematorium staff were put under pressure.
To ease this burden, most authorities increased the slots to 40 minutes. This is true of my local authorities, Wakefield, Leeds and Kirklees.
The new full slots allow 10 minutes to enter and listen to the entry music, 20 minutes for the service (which can include a middle piece of music) and 10 minutes to listen to the exit music and leave the chapel. Staff then prepare the chapel for the next service as funerals are booked back-to-back.
If funerals run over the allotted time, the authority has the right to levy a fine. If one slot (40 minutes) is not enough time, a double slot can be booked at an extra cost. This is cheaper than the fine!
Different crematoria have different provisions for music. See ‘Music during the funeral service’. The internet systems are very proficient but you will need both the title of the piece and the artist to give to your funeral director. The music chosen must also be in the public domain.
I have also written a separate blog on multimedia facilities at crematoria (which includes music and/or visuals). You can find it here.
Church Services
If the service is to be held in a church or private venue, the time is governed by that establishment. Also, if the deceased had church connections this may involve more pageantry – such as choirs, flag-bearers etc.
Most church services are approximately 20-30 minutes. The standard service usually includes 2 or 3 hymns which may be replaced by popular music if the church allows this and has those facilities.
If a full Catholic mass is involved, church time will be 45-60 minutes. The Catholic service tends to be much more rigid and usually only includes hymns. If a mass is opted for, more hymns can be included.
Not all churches can provide an organist and some use the internet to provide digital versions of the hymns.
If the family want live music, a choir can sometimes be provided at a cost, though this is quite rare. If the deceased’s family or friends would like to provide live music, it is usually welcomed.
The minister will liaise with your funeral director to sort out the timings allowing time to chat outside the church after the funeral.
Following the church service, the deceased is taken for burial or cremation. Families can choose to accompany the deceased for the committal. Some opt to have the committal in church and do not accompany the deceased.
If the committal is to take place at a graveside, it is normally just prayers but I have known families provide their own music on portable players. Alternatively, if a crematorium is chosen, families have a time slot included in the service provision and it is normal to have recorded music played on entry and on leaving the chapel.
If families also want a middle piece of music, this is possible and will extend the time of the committal. Normally, this part of a church service is quite short.
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