Funeral Music Suggestions

For Funeral Masses, please consider songs for each of these Liturgical Moments:

• Preludes
• Opening Song
• Responsorial Psalm (a call-and-response song based on the psalms)
• Gospel Acclamation (the "Alleluia")
• Presentation & Preparation of Gifts ("Offertory")
• Mass setting (Holy, Memorial Acclamation, Great Amen, Lamb of God)
• Communion
• Commendation of the Spirit ("Song of Farewell")
• Final/Closing Song

Here is a suggestion list based on oft-chosen tunes.  Click on the links to listen.
  
PRELUDE
 This is music that starts about 10-20 minutes before the mass
 Instrumental and/or vocal music (classical, contemporary,...)
 Consider any of the songs listed below (sung or instrumental, sacred or secular)
  
OPENING OR CLOSING SONG
 This is a song that should be sung by the entire congregation.

All Is Well with My Soul
"Alleluia, Alleluia" or "Joyful, Joyful" (HYMN TO JOY, Beethoven)
Amazing Grace
Be Not Afraid
Be Thou My Vision (Irish tune SLANE)
Be With Me, Lord (by Tom Booth)
Christ Be Beside Me (Gaelic/Scottish tune BUNESSAN)
Christ In Me Arise (based on St. Patrick's Breastplate)
City of God
Come to the Water
Come to the Water/I Will Run to You (arr. Maher)
For the Beauty of the Earth
Go In Peace (Hart, Liles) 
God of Day and God of Darkness (Beach Spring hymn)
Here I Am, Lord (Schutte)
How Can I Keep from Singing
How Great Thou Art
 I Know That My Redeemer Lives (Duke Street hymn)
I Know That My Redeemer Lives (S. Soper)
Jesus Christ Is Risen Today
 The King of Love My Shepherd Is (Irish tune ST. COLUMBA)
Let All Things Now Living (Welsh tune THE ASH GROVE)
Lord of All Hopefulness (Irish tune SLANE)
Morning Has Broken (Gaelic/Scottish tune BUNESSAN)
On Eagle's Wings
Sing with All the Saints in Glory (HYMN TO JOY, Beethoven)
Soon and Very Soon
When the Saints Go Marching In (not in hymnals)

 
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
 This song is meant to be from the Psalms and in a call-and-response format.
 Oft-used psalms are listed.  Other psalms can be used.

Songs based on Psalm 23
Psalm 23 (by Sarah Hart) sung here by Ann Sager
Shepherd Me, O God (familiar call-and-response song)
I Shall Not Want (by Tom Booth)
Psalm 23 (Conry)
The Lord Is My Shepherd (Crandal)
The Lord Is My Shepherd (Blakesley) 
23rd Psalm (by Bobby McFerrin) (not in hymnals & not really call-response)

Songs based on Psalm 25
To You, O God, I Lift Up My Soul (Hurd)
I Lift Up My Soul (T. Manion) 
Remember Your Mercies, O Lord (Craig & Kristen Colsen)
To You, O Lord (T.R. Smith)
 To You, O Lord (Owen Alstott)
To You, O Lord (M. Joncas)
To You, O Lord (S. Soper) 

Songs based on Psalm 27
The Goodness of the Lord (S. Soper) 
 The Lord Is My Light (C. Walker)
The Lord Is My Light (R. DeBruyn)
The Lord Is My Light (J. Manibusan)
The Lord Is My Light (Angus McDonnell)
The Lord Is My Light (Haas)
The Lord Is Near/May the Angels (Joncas, Michael)

Songs based on Psalm 34
Taste and See (Angrisano)
Taste and See (John Michael Talbot)
Taste and See (Whitaker)
Taste and See (Hurd)
Taste and See (Dean)
Taste and See (Willcock)

Songs based on Psalm 63
My Soul is Thirsting (Angrisano)
My Soul is Thirsting (Joncas)

Songs based on Psalm 91
Be With Me, Lord (Haugen)
Be With Me, Lord (Tom Booth)
Be With Me, Lord (Sarah Hart)
Be With Me, Lord (Joncas)
Be With Me, Lord (Fisher)
Be With Me, Lord (Canedo)

Songs based on Psalm 103
The Lord is Kind and Merciful (Modlin)
The Lord is Kind and Merciful (Manibusan)

Songs based on Psalm 116
In the Presence of God (Kendzia)

Songs based on Psalm 118
This is the Day (K. Keil)

Songs based on Psalm 126
God Has Done Great Things For Us (Haugen)

Songs based on Psalm 145
The Lord is Near (Booth)

ALLELUIA/GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

Alstott's Alleluia from Respond & Acclaim is a simple refrain+verse and well-known
The "Celtic Alleluia" is well-known
C. Stephan's Alleluia from the Mass of Renewal is becoming well-known in Seattle

 
PRESENTATION OF GIFTS (used only in a Funeral Mass)

Carry Me Home (R. Modlin)
Prayer of St. Francis (S. Temple)
Pastures of the Lord (C. Stephan)
 ...or use nearly any sacred song here

MASS ACCLAMATIONS (used only in a Funeral Mass)

LORD'S PRAYER
 Spoken, together with the congregation or

"The Lord's Prayer" by Malotte is well-known
     --sung as a solo, if okayed by presiding priest
     --adds about three minutes to the service

COMMUNION (used only in a Funeral Mass) 
 (also see opening/closing or other lists)

Behold the Lamb (Willett)
Behold the Lamb of God (Dufford)
Bread for the World (Farrell)
Bread of Angels (C. Stephan)
Bread of Life (Fisher)
Bread of Life/Pan de Vida (Cortez)
Gift of Finest Wheat
God Will Wipe Away Every Tear (M. D. Ridge)
Here At This Table
I Am the Bread of Life (JM Talbot)
I Am the Bread of Life (Toolan)
In This Place (Thomson)
It Is Well with My Soul
 Look Beyond
My Soul Is Thirsting (Angrisano)
O Sanctissima
O Taste and See (Haugen)
One Bread, One Body (Foley)
Our Blessing Cup (Joncas)
Prayer of St. Francis
Pan de Vida (Hurd/Moriarty)
Panis Angelicus (Franck) (solo song, not in hymnals)
Psalm 23 (Conry)
Song of the Body of Christ (Haugen/Haas)
Table of Plenty
 Taste and See (many settings)
Taste and See (Angrisano)
Taste and See (Hurd)
The King of Love My Shepherd Is
 Ubi Caritas
Unless a Grain of Wheat (Hurd)
Vine and Branches (Thomson)
 We Are Many Parts
We Are One Body (Scallon) (contemporary)
We Come Today (contemporary)
 We Praise You
 We Remember
 You Are Our Living Bread

 
COMMENDATION OF THE SOUL / SONG OF FAREWELL
 (*not all priests are ok with non-traditional songs*)

Traditional (with the ritual words, "May the choirs of angels come to meet you...")
In Paradisum (Chant, Mode VII and Mode VIII)
Song of Farewell (Sands)
Song of Farewell (OLD HUNDREDTH)

Less Traditional (but with ritual text still in mind, "May the choirs of angels come to meet you...")
An Old Irish Blessing (Keil)
Carry Me Home (Modlin)
Irish Blessing (Fabing)
Go In Peace (Hart, Liles) (Ann's favorite)
Give Us Your Peace (Manibusan/Hart)
Go Forth, Christian Soul (T. Thomson)
May the Road Rise Up (Kendzia)
May You Walk with Christ (Dean, Stephen) 
O Loving God (to the tune of Danny Boy)
Song of Farewell (Schutte, Dan) 

CLOSING SONG
 This is a song that should be sung by the entire congregation.
 (see opening/closing list above)
  

OTHER IDEAS 
Non-sacred (secular) songs should be used only as Preludes & Postludes, "outside" of the Mass.
 Check with your priest and musician(s).

All is Well with My Soul
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life - Monty Python. Most popular funeral song in U.K.!
Angel - Sarah McLachlan
Angel Band (Ralph Stanley), the most-recorded song in history
Aquarius - from "Hair"
 At Last - Etta James
Ave Maria (Bach-Gounod) (not in hymnals)
Ave Maria (Schubert) (not in hymnals)
 Beyond the Sea - Bobby Darin
Blue Skies - Irving Berlin
Breathe - Michael W. Smith
Canon in D - Johann Pachelbel (Dona Nobis Pacem mix)
Carry Me Home (Modlin)
Con Te Partiro (Time to Say Goodbye) (Andre Bocelli and Sarah Brightman) (not in hymnals)
Come Now Almighty King (Italian Hymn)
Danny Boy (by Fredric Weatherly, tune of Londonderry Air)
Edelweiss (from the Sound of Music)
Eternal Father, Strong to Save (Navy Hymn)
Evening Prayer ["When at night I go to sleep..."] (duet from the opera, Hansel and Gretel)
 Fly Me to the Moon (Frank Sinatra)
The Dance (Garth Brooks)
Go In Peace (Hart, Liles)
God Will Wipe Away Every Tear (M. D. Ridge)
Hallelujah (L. Cohen) (Jeff Buckley)
Hail Mary, Gentle Woman
He Lives In You (from the Lion King)
 Husky Fight Song
Hosea  (Norbet, Gregory; Weston Priory) (Kairy Marquez version)
I Can Only Imagine (Mercy Me)
I Am the Bread of Life (Toolan)
I Will Remember You - Sarah McLachlan
I'll Be Seeing You - Billie Holiday
I'll Fly Away (Albert E. Brumley)
In the Garden (not in hymnals)
It Is Well with My Soul
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach)
Lord of the Dance
Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel) - Billy Joel   
My Sweet Lord - George Harrison
My Way - Frank Sinatra singing
 Navy Hymn (Eternal Father, Strong to Save)
Night and Day
One Day (When We All Get to Heaven) (Matt Redman)
Ombra mai fu (from Handel's Xerxes), sung at many Italian funerals, I've learned
Panis Angelicus (Franck) (solo song, not in hymnals)
Pie Jesu (duet not in hymnals) (from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Requiem)
Prayer of St. Francis
Precious Lord, Take My Hand 
Remember Me - from Disney's "Coco" (so sweet.)
 Scars In Heaven - Casting Crowns
Solace - Scott Joplin piano solo
Simple Gifts 
Spirit in the Sky - Norman Greenbaum
 Somewhere Over the Rainbow
 Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton
Turn, Turn, Turn - The Byrds (based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)
What A Wonderful World
You Are the Wind Beneath My Wings
 You Can Close Your Eyes - James Taylor
You Raise Me Up - Josh Grobin

 
 Most songs above are linked to recordings but please search for more music on these and other sites:
http://www.spiritandsong.com/ 
ocp.org - search "funeral" 
https://www.youtube.com/
  
 I hope this gives you a good place to start.  Please email me with any questions.

Ann
[email protected]