Funeral choirs and wedding singers for Edinburgh
Edinburgh is Scotland’s capital, a city of medieval closes, Georgian crescents, and churches whose choral traditions stretch back to the Reformation. We send professional singers, choirs, and instrumentalists to funerals, weddings, and memorials across Edinburgh and beyond.
Wedding choirs in Edinburgh
Scottish law allows couples to marry almost anywhere — in a church, a castle, a country house, or outdoors — so Edinburgh weddings take place in settings a choir fills well. Couples marry at St Giles’ Cathedral on the Royal Mile (where we sing with the cathedral’s permission), at Canongate Kirk (on the Canongate, near the Palace of Holyroodhouse), at Greyfriars Kirk, and at venues such as the Signet Library, the Mansfield Traquair, and the Queen Anne Room at Edinburgh Castle. Our singers hold the hymns together when the congregation is unsure of the tune. If you have not yet chosen hymns, our guide to choosing wedding hymns can help you narrow the list.
A civil ceremony in Scotland may include religious readings or hymns. The registrar does not lead them, so a family member or friend gives the reading, and our singers lead the hymn. Edinburgh’s registrars keep religious words out of the legal declarations and the pronouncement, so ask your registrar early what you may include and where it can go. Our guide to the best choral pieces for a wedding covers music for church and civil ceremonies.
Where we sing in Edinburgh
St Giles’ Cathedral, the High Kirk of Edinburgh, stands on the Royal Mile between the Castle and Holyrood. Its crown steeple dates from the late fifteenth century, and the Rieger organ, installed in 1992, has three manuals and 56 stops. The cathedral has its own choir and organist, so we sing there only with the cathedral’s permission, joining the choir or singing as a separate ensemble. For a funeral or wedding under the vaulted ceiling we suggest a choir of eight.
Canongate Kirk, the Kirk of Holyroodhouse, was built in 1688 by order of James VII. Members of the Royal Family have married there, and its graveyard holds the economist Adam Smith. A choir of four to six fills its interior. Greyfriars Kirk, on the edge of the Old Town, dates from 1620 and was the first church built in Edinburgh after the Reformation. Its two-manual organ and its stone walls give a warm acoustic for both weddings and funerals.
Mortonhall Crematorium, run by the City of Edinburgh Council, has a main chapel seating around 120 and a smaller chapel seating around 50. Warriston Crematorium, the city’s other crematorium, sits in the north of the city. Our crematorium music guide explains how the music fits a crematorium service, and our funeral choir hire page explains how we work with your funeral director.
Funeral music in Edinburgh
Finding musicians is one task you can hand to us when someone has died. Our singers perform at funerals and memorial services across Edinburgh: at St Giles’ Cathedral, with the cathedral’s permission, at Canongate Kirk, at Greyfriars Kirk, at Mortonhall and Warriston crematoria, and at parish churches throughout the city and the Lothians. We shape the music around the person you are remembering and the people who will be there, whether that is a solo soprano singing Ave Maria as the coffin is carried in or a quartet leading a hymn the family chose.
In Edinburgh’s stone churches, with their high ceilings, a trained voice reaches the back of the nave without a microphone. All our musicians are conservatoire-trained, and many have sung in cathedral and collegiate choirs across the country. If you are not sure where to begin, our funeral music guide sets out the practical choices alongside suggestions for hymns, solos, and choral works. You are welcome to message us on WhatsApp or by email at any time to talk things through, with no obligation.
From London to Edinburgh
LNER runs trains from London King’s Cross to Edinburgh Waverley, and the journey takes around four and a half hours. Direct flights from London take about an hour and a quarter. Our prices include travel within Greater London; Edinburgh is outside it, so we add the singers’ travel to the written quote before you book, and a church in the Lothians or Fife goes in the same figure.
The singers arrive an hour before the service to warm up, rehearse in the building, and agree timings with the minister or funeral director. At Mortonhall they confirm the start time with the crematorium staff, because services follow one another through the day.
Choir sizes and prices for Edinburgh
A choir of four costs £1,150 and suits Canongate Kirk or the smaller chapel at Mortonhall; a quintet is £1,400 and a sextet £1,600. For St Giles’ Cathedral, with the cathedral’s permission, we suggest a choir of eight at £2,000 or a chorus of twelve at £3,000. A soloist costs £275. We can add our organist to a choir for £250, or an organist or pianist on their own for £275, or a harpist or string quartet. Luca Wetherall chooses the singers and players for each Edinburgh booking from our own small team of professionals. Standard fees for each ensemble size are on our pricing page, and the written quote adds travel before you book.
“We were all over the place trying to organise everything and he just took the music completely off our hands. On the day it was honestly the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard.”
Christmas carol singers in Edinburgh
In December we sing for offices, hotels, and events across Edinburgh. We put together Christmas carol services with a fixed programme, or send carol singers for hire to move between rooms at a party, and we sing without microphones.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a funeral choir cost in Edinburgh?
A Small Choir of four costs £1,150 for a funeral at St Giles’ Cathedral, Mortonhall Crematorium, or a parish church in the city. A quintet is £1,400, a sextet £1,600, and a choir of eight £2,000, and our organist adds £250 where the church has an organ. Each fee covers up to two hours, rehearsal included. Edinburgh lies outside Greater London, so we quote travel on its own and give you the full figure before you book. Our funeral choir page explains what the choir sings and how we work with your funeral director.
Can your choir sing at St Giles’ Cathedral?
Only with the cathedral’s permission. St Giles’ Cathedral has its own choir and organist, so we ask the cathedral before we confirm a booking there. With its agreement our singers join the cathedral choir or sing as a separate ensemble. For a funeral or wedding in the cathedral we suggest a choir of eight, which costs £2,000.
Can you provide a wedding choir for an Edinburgh church or venue?
Yes. Scottish law allows couples to marry almost anywhere, and our choirs sing at weddings in Edinburgh’s churches, at venues such as the Signet Library and the Mansfield Traquair, and in the Queen Anne Room at Edinburgh Castle. We match the size of the ensemble to each space and can learn new repertoire if a piece holds particular meaning for you.
What music suits a funeral at St Giles’ Cathedral or Mortonhall Crematorium?
We sing traditional hymns, classical sacred works by composers such as Fauré and Mozart, and contemporary songs arranged for voices or instruments. The vaulted ceiling of St Giles’ suits large choral pieces, while smaller spaces such as Canongate Kirk or the chapels at Mortonhall suit gentler solos and smaller ensembles. We can also arrange a personal favourite.
Do you sing at Mortonhall Crematorium in Edinburgh?
Yes. We sing at Mortonhall Crematorium, where the main chapel seats around 120 and the smaller chapel around 50. Our musicians coordinate with the crematorium staff and your funeral director so the music fits the order of service.
Can you provide carol singers in Edinburgh in December?
Yes. We send singers for carol services and roaming carol singing at offices, hotels, and events across Edinburgh in December, all performed without a microphone. Our Christmas page has more information.
Planning music for one of Edinburgh’s historic churches or one of the city’s crematoria involves a few decisions, and our funeral music guide, popular funeral hymns, wedding hymns guide, and funeral music costs guide cover them.