Marry You

Marry You is an agency for free (non-church) ceremonies based at Fabrikstrasse 11 in 2543 Lengnau. It lists a team of eight celebrants, Carina, Mike, Jasmin, Claudia, Laura, Michael, Karin and Beth, and covers free weddings, free christenings and other important life events. Two of its celebrants, Laura and Carina, are singers (Carina is a trained singer) who can also sing during the ceremony, and their profile pages carry detailed interviews, reviews and music prices. Most of what the site says in detail is on those two profiles.

What the agency offers

The site's navigation sets out the range. Under "Freie Zeremonien" it lists Freie Trauung, Freie Hochzeit, Freie Taufe (a free christening or naming ceremony), Wichtiges Erlebnis (an important life event) and a page on free wedding rituals. Further sections cover prices and packages ("Preise und Packages"), the running order of a ceremony ("Ablauf"), rituals, references and wedding tips, and a newsletter offers weekly wedding tips. Under "Hochzeits-musik" the site points to Wedding Voice and DJ Nerds. The contents of the price, rituals and running-order pages are not reproduced on the celebrant profiles, so the base price of a ceremony is not given there.

Contact for all celebrants runs through the agency: +41 (0)79 639 67 98 and booking@marry-you.ch, with a "Jetzt anfragen" (inquire now) button on each profile.

Laura, celebrant and singer

Laura's profile calls her «Freie Traurednerin & Sängerin». In her interview she says she was born in 1991, grew up in rural Alterswil and now lives in the old town of Fribourg (Freiburger Altstadt), a place she says combines creativity, culture and a feeling of home. She came to ceremonies through music: she sang at weddings, was moved by the atmosphere, and, having «ein grosses Herz für Sprache» (a big heart for language), began writing free ceremonies too. Her work today, she says, is the combination of music and words.

She describes herself as empathetic and attentive, someone who finds «Worte oder Töne für das, was zwischen den Zeilen liegt» (words or notes for what lies between the lines). Her favorite moment is the quote at the top of her page: «Ich liebe den Moment, wenn ich die ersten Töne singen darf, die Türe sich öffnet und sich die Blicke des Brautpaares treffen» (I love the moment when I get to sing the first notes, the door opens and the couple's eyes meet). She calls her style «gefühlvoll, nahbar und lebendig» (heartfelt, approachable and lively), «ohne Kitsch, aber mit ganz viel Herz» (without kitsch, but with a lot of heart), and says she can improvise when needed. Away from ceremonies she cooks and bakes, listens to podcasts, reads, and keeps singing, on stage, at weddings or just for herself.

Her singing offer, on top of the ceremony: 5 songs from a repertoire of over 150 wedding songs, with all technical equipment, for an additional CHF 750. Songs outside the repertoire are possible, usually at 100 per song for the extra work. Live music at the aperitif for up to 2 hours costs 820, and booking singing for both ceremony and aperitif brings a discount of 280.

Her reviews, several in Swiss German, praise her singing and her relaxed manner during the ceremony. One couple admitted they had high expectations and were «sicherlich nicht die Einfachsten» (certainly not the easiest) during the preparations, and thanked her for her patience.

Carina, celebrant and singer

Carina Kaufmann, born in 1986, lives in the Thun region, where she grew up, with her husband and two children. She is a trained marketing and communications specialist with experience in moderation, communication and project management, has sung since childhood, and has acted in theater productions. She now performs at weddings and events with her band "4ever" or solo.

She became a celebrant after experiencing many weddings as a singer, witness or guest; her own wedding, she says, was very individual and moving, and she wants to give couples the same, a day with the couple and their story «zu 100 Prozent im Mittelpunkt» (100 percent at the center). Her profile opens with «So einzigartig wie ihr als Menschen seid, so einzigartig soll auch eure Trauung sein» (as unique as you are as people, your ceremony should be just as unique) and promises empathy, humor, professionalism and heart. She accompanies couples from the first conversation to the ceremony. Her view of marriage appears on her page too: «Die Ehe ist eine wunderbare Entdeckungsreise» (marriage is a wonderful voyage of discovery), and she looks forward to starting that adventure with each couple. The couple's entrance, she says, moves her every time. And, she adds, she does not like mashed potatoes, which is fortunately not part of a celebrant's job description.

Her singing offer: 5 songs and all musical equipment for an additional CHF 750 with playback, or CHF 1250 with a guitarist or pianist and, depending on availability, harmony singing as a duo or trio.

Her reviews describe a speech «so persönlich und zugleich universell, dass sich jeder angesprochen fühlte» (so personal and at the same time universal that everyone felt addressed) and a story told so well that even the most skeptical relatives were moved.

Language

The agency site and both profiles are in German, and the reviews are in German and Swiss German. Neither profile says whether the celebrant leads ceremonies in English or French. A couple who need an English or bilingual ceremony should ask the agency which of its eight celebrants can do it.

What the site does not settle

The profiles do not give the base price of a ceremony; that is on the separate prices and packages page. They do not describe the other six celebrants, say where the agency's celebrants travel or what travel costs, or give a booking lead time. They do not explain how the agency matches a couple with a celebrant.

Who it suits

Marry You suits German-speaking couples who want a free ceremony and like the idea of choosing from a team rather than a single celebrant, and in particular couples who want live singing woven into the ceremony by the person leading it. Laura and Carina publish their music prices clearly, which helps with budgeting that part of the day.

For couples from abroad, the German-only site is the hurdle. Ask about language, the base ceremony price and travel in the first message.