How to choose the right melody for a funeral rite

The right melody

Choosing the best music for a funeral can be difficult, but once you find the right piece of music to remember a loved one, it can bring peace and tranquillity at a time when it is most needed.

It is not true that grief only has one sound, the sombre one. Saying goodbye to a loved one can also be dressed in beauty, bring comfort and fill the silence with its notes that unite and spread serenity.

That serenity of soul that any of us would like to have at the moment of the last farewell to the loved one who has passed away. Here then, music becomes an integral part of the funeral or farewell ceremony in the form you desire, whether vocal or instrumental.

Most people do not make known what they would like as musical accompaniment during their funeral and this leads to a total difference between what they would like and what is actually played during the funeral.

While the majority of us (73%) have never thought about a funeral arrangement and how they would like the ceremony to be set up, if asked directly what kind of music they would like, the majority (81%) always have at least one preference and, most importantly, that preference is for songs that are played every day rather than the more traditional funeral hymns.

However, if we do not tell our loved ones what we want, it is really difficult for them to fulfil our last wishes.

That is why Ofisa has an archive of songs and pieces from which to draw, and dedicated staff advise and suggest those songs or pieces that might most closely reflect the departed person.

Think, for example, of some of Bach's compositions where the music comes to life in a gentle beat, similar to a heartbeat, composed for orchestral suite, or the extraordinary piece by Albinoni that has the power to evoke love, sorrow and happiness.

Melodies rise and fall with the first violins, while the second violins imitate their melody, creating a harmony as unique as Schubert's Ave Maria, the perfect piece of music to remember a loved one. A musical adaptation of the traditional Roman Catholic prayer, Schubert's melody is both soothing and uplifting.

We could not think of a more beautiful tribute with which to remember someone who has kept us company and whom we have loved for a lifetime. Among the musical services offered by Ofisa is the possibility of: