We take music at a wedding for granted. After all, how can there be festivities without music to accompany them? The Maharil, Horav Yaakov Molin, zl, was probably the greatest contributor to interpretation of halachah and adaptation of minhagim of the various poskim of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. He certainly maintained the most profound influence, which ultimately determined what became minhag Ashkenaz. While the marriage ceremony had customs that reflected overtones of mourning – despite the great joy of the moment – these customs, which are maintained to this day, were in place to underscore the solemnity of the moment.
The Maharil emphasizes the use of music at a wedding. Indeed, an unusual decision is attributed and recorded in his name, with regard to the use of music at a wedding. Apparently, the wife of the German ruler had died and, in tribute to her memory, the king prohibited music to be played at weddings taking place in the province – for the entire year. Maharil had ruled no wedding take place without accompanying music. As a result, he ordered the couple involved to travel three miles to the city of Mainz, Germany, so that they could celebrate their wedding with music!
Sheva Brachos were also accompanied by music –even on Shabbos, when the musicians were gentile. Teshuvos Radbaz writes that this practice was not permitted in Yerushalayim, Egypt and Damascus, unless the non-Jew came of his own volition to play at the festivities. Obviously the music accompanying the wedding celebration officiated by the Maharil was a far cry from today’s wide choice of tonal range, dramatic shifts in cadence, and often overwhelming volume. In “those days,” music served as an accompaniment to the moment – not its centerpiece. It was measured, dignified and reverent, reflecting an awareness that marriage is not merely a celebration, but a sacred transition.
