Dancing Back to the Start
MARTIN SMITH Record Reviews
Hillsong Live l BJ Putnam David Crowder Band
l
Aaron Shust
JULY/AUG 2013 Volume 11, Issue 4
Product Review: Larose 1 Ton Hollow Boy
07
0
74470 58440
7
US $5.95 Can $6.95
“Jukebox Worship” by Tom Lane
l
“Scrub the Scowl (Wearing the Face Of Grace)” by Sandy Hoffman
FR NEW IS E SU E E!
Finding the Right Music Gear for Your Church Just Got Easier!
Get the Newest FREE Issue of Worship Sound Pro — the Ultimate Music Gear Guide for Houses of Worship! Call Today for Your FREE Copy! The Best Technology for Worship
Worship Sound Pro features the latest and most essential music equipment and technology for today’s houses of worship.
MultiTracks and the Modern Musical Message Find out how you can enhance your worship performances with professional-sounding accompaniment — and learn about the tools that make it happen.
Essential Guides for You and Your Volunteers In-depth, down-to-earth articles help volunteers, pastors, and worship leaders understand the ins and outs of the latest in worship sound technology. Go to Sweetwater.com/worship to learn more about MultiTracks!
Working with MultiTracks loops and tracks instantly gives your worship team a fuller, more professional sound. When you transition to working with clicks and loops, you need the right tools on the platform to make sure the team hears clearly and performs its best. Here are some essentials:
LLive 9 TThis software pputs you in ccommand of yyour clicks, loops, and stems. It’s easy to use and has become very popular with worship groups.
MultiTracks M ult and the
Modern M o Musical Message
MultiT MultiTracks.com gives worship teams the tools they need to bring professional-sounding accompaniment and loops to the platform. profes
When you open a MultiTracks file in your DAW, you can easily pick the parts you need.
Without W ithoutt question, quest more and more churches are supplementing their live sound with multiple-track accompaniment and loops for live worship peerform mances This concept’s growing popularity has led to a demand for great-sounding tracks and loops that are also easy to work with. We spoke with performances. Phillip Ph hillip EEdwards, dward founder of MultiTracks.com, and asked him about the transitions that churches are making to running tracks — and the gear they need effectively. Sweetwater is proud to partner with MultiTracks.com to provide the potential for a fuller, more professional sound on the platform. to do soo effec Ma Many M a any n ny worship leaders may have heard about running “clicks” or ““tracks” tra acks” in w worship, but these names don’t always mean the same Could you begin by describing the difference tthing hing ttoo everyone. every between track and a MultiTrack? Also, a click b etween an accompaniment a ttrack tr rack and and a loop? Absolutely. I’m just old enough to remember going to the Christian bookstore cassettes of accompaniment tracks with the lead vocal removed. and seeing cas are not that kind of “track.” That is an accompaniment track to be MultiTracks ar used without lilive musicians. MultiTracks are a collection of all the individual “stems” from a recording. Our Original Master MultiTracks are the parts or “stems that the original artists use on tour to add in parts from their own same thing tha recordings to help h them sound like their albums and to fill out their live sound. A click track is the actual click that functions as a metronome in a musician’s in-ear mix. A cclick helps the musician stay in time, both with the band and any track he or she may be playing along with. You can use the built-in click from any standalone click track that can be sent to the front of house and then DAW, or a stand mix. back to your monitor m simply a recorded track that loops continuously. I think people A loop is simpl generalize a loop as being any track that is played along with a band. sometimes gen But typically a loop should refer to a percussive or melodic phrase that you can repeat over and over as you play a section of a song. Doo yyou D ou eever ver hhear of worship team members having a challenge ttransitioning ransitioning to using a click track in their ears? I teach about tthis at a worship conference, and I’ve heard this so often that now I just ask those who are currently running a click track with a worship team to the differences they’ve experienced in their team after they added speak about th the click. I can always count on the same story. Usually there is some initial resistance, but pretty soon everyone loves the benefits of playing in time, and they always want to use a click after that. Using a click track makes everyone play tighter, ighter, and the consistency definitely improves. You’ll be amazed at the feedback you Also, ou receive! Al so, pre-recorded vocal guide cues give the team count-ins, so transitions ransitions andd song entrances are smoother and easier to navigate.
Worship Sound Pro 101 Guides
Customer-favorite >> YAMAHA
MOX8
$
169999 More info on pg. 108
Take a look at the instruments we’ve highlighted in this guide, including Yamaha’s MOTIF XF8, the affordable Korg SP280, and the piano-like Kurzweil PC3K8. You’ll also want to check out the Hammond XK-3c.
Workstations: Workstations ations:: Powerful P Tools Tools for the Worship Leader
Choosing the Right
While streamlined, piano-like instruments are ideal for a number of worship leaders andSound church pianists, other houses of worship rely on keyboards Worship Pro 101many Guides for much more than just piano sounds. In fact, if you’re a piano-centric worship leader, you may very well be able to perform and produce your entire service with a single powerful instrument called a keyboard workstation. More than just keyboards with hundreds, sometimes thousands, of instrument sounds, these instruments often feature multitrack sequencers, so you can layer all the different instrument parts into a full orchestration. It’s very similar to working with audio editing and production software, only you’re not tethered to a computer — and you can easily play these backing tracks right from your keyboard during services. And even if you do have a complete worship band, you can use a workstation to add a few choice backing instruments to fill out your sound — perhaps a second trumpet part, a string section, or even an extra kick drum sound for more power.
Keyboard
Picks
Korg Krome-61 Powerful workstation with world-class sounds
$
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More info on pg. 110
The Path to Great
KEYBOARD Guitar Sound Whether you’re looking for a simple instrument that just plays and sounds like a real acoustic piano, or you’re seeking a powerful centerpiece for all your worship team’s ambitions, there’s a digital piano that’s right for your church. To help you zero in on the perfect keyboard for your needs, let’s take a look at the different kinds of keyboards available, as well as the important factors you’ll want to consider when making your decision.
When Less Is More Many church pianists we work with often feel overwhelmed by the number of choices out there — and even more so by the number of knobs, buttons, and controls on keyboards. “All I need,” they tell us, “is an instrument that plays like an acoustic piano and has a fantastic natural piano sound.” If this sounds like you, you’ll want to select what’s called a stage piano — and ideally one with a full set of 88 weighted keys (also called weighted action). These keyboards actually mimic the response of a grand piano’s keybed, where the lowest keys require more force to strike, and the upper keys feel light and airy beneath your fingertips. To nail the sound of an acoustic piano, today’s top keyboard manufacturers have gone to great lengths to record some of the finest grand pianos in the world, putting these sounds right inside the instruments. Not only can you get the sound of a classic Steinway, but on many you can also push a single button to get the sound of a Bosendorfer, a Yamaha C7, or a character-filled upright. If you’re replacing an acoustic piano, you should consider the importance of aesthetics to your church. If you have more-traditional services or are seeking a really natural look up on the platform, then you may want to choose a more authentic-looking stage piano. We have options available with wooden cabinets, in a variety of finishes, so you can choose an instrument that matches the decor of your church.
FIVE Main Features to Consider As you take a look at the keyboards featured on the next few pages, these five factors will help you start narrowing down your decision:
1. Action
Do you want keys that are weighted to feel and play just like an acoustic piano’s? Or do you want keys that glide beneath your fingers so that you can easily play synth and organ parts?
2. Sounds
Do you primarily need an authentic acoustic piano sound, or would you like to have other sounds such as strings, synths, electric pianos, organs, and more?
3. Arranging/Recording Capabilities
Will you be composing songs with your keyboard? If so, you may want to have a built-in sequencer, onboard drum sounds, and a direct-to-computer connection.
4. Size and Portability
Choosing a 76-key keyboard instead of a full-size 88-key instrument can be a great way to cut down on weight while maintaining a first-class playing experience.
5. Appearance
How important is it that your church’s keyboard resemble an acoustic piano? Do you want an integrated stand, or would you prefer to use a more portable stage-style keyboard stand?
Call us today at (800) 222–4700
Kurzweil PC3K8 Amazing feel and piano sounds
$
3495
00
More info on pg. 110
A Balance of Features for Modern Worship
If you don’t need the all-out power of a workstation, but you’d still like a Roland RD-64 handful of cutting-edge capabilities — maybe built-in drum patterns for Portability plus great rehearsals and a lighter sequencer for a quick songwriting sketch pad — there instruments and $ 00 are a number of options that fall somewhere in between the two categories playing As worship services and events become more diverse and tied intofeel today’s culture, it’s we’ve already mentioned. Instead of choosing an 88-key option, which has the More info on pg. 112 same number ofthat keys asthe a fullmusic piano, you can select a 76-key — or smaller — inevitable performances involved become increasingly contemporary. version. These instruments trade a slightly reduced range (many keyboardists It’s just ashighest common to see setups onand the platform as it is to see pianos, never use the and lowest keys full-band anyway) for lighter weight a more portable form factor. You can still get fully weighted keys on a 76-key piano, organs, and choir ensembles. or you can choose a semi-weighted version that works well if you perform a Hammond XK-3c blend of classic and modern rather than strictlycan piano. benefit from using a DI box — especially if your setup One very attractive elementinstrument of modernsounds, worship music
999
Classic Hammond
involves outboard effects and other gear (with balanced performance is the guitar a very portable, versatile Increasing in popularity are — keyboards that feature a built-in microphone organ sounds inputs) instrument also happens be relatively affordable input. These that are perfect for the to performing worship leader and great for in addition to your amplifier, or requires extremely longthe cable runs. Balancing the signal with a direct box (compared to thatservices. hulking The pipevocal organ). Though worship scaled-down youth microphone goes right through helps performersoutput, have been using guitars as accompaniment for Better keyboard’s so you’ll need to amplify only one signal. yet, to keep the signal strong and helps to remove $ pesky00 electronic decades, the last few vocal yearseffects have seen boom in guitars there are professional builtain, so you can refine the vocal soundinterference. There are DI boxes available to suit More info on pg. 107 every budget. as standout instruments. youof effectively without having to purchaseBut anhow extrado piece gear. integrate the guitar into your gathering without turning the Don’t Forget Sounds Natural Sound, Even Plugged In proceedings into aAbout loud rockRealistic show? Read Organ on.
2895
X 61 Taking “direct” to anKorg entirely Kronos new level, some acoustic The organ is still a very popular instrument for worship services. And while Going Direct Great workstation, guitar-centric pedals and even onboard preamps $ include 00 most of the keyboards we carry feature a built-in organ sound, you can get loaded with free that extras very specialized EQ curves and effects give your Theorgan-playing dynamic, natural sound of acousticwith guitar is right— upby choosing that experience —an complete drawbars a More info on pg. 109 there with the pianofor when comes to accompanying solo dedicated instrument the ittask. artists or ensembles with one instrument. Until relatively Have more questions? Our Sales Engineers are here to help you choose the recently, though, playing your acoustic live meant remaining best keyboard for your church’s goals. In fact, what you see in Worship Sound stationary in front of a microphone and fighting feedback Pro is just a small sampling of the many keyboards we have available. Give us a from the sound system. The advent of onboard pickups call today at (800) 222–4700. freed acoustic players from this fate, allowing them to plug right into an amp or PA system and, in many cases, >> AVID Korg SP280 $ 00 $ 00 control the guitar’s volume and tone. One mostly unsung Outstanding playability, Eleven Rack More portability info on pg. 130 but very useful tool for amplifying an acoustic guitar is sounds, and More info on pg. 114 the DI, or direct box. In general plugged-in guitar a more natural sound. Fishman’s Aura terms, the purpose of a DI box is to line actually includes stompboxes matched to specific body convert the signal coming from your styles. Simply plug your favorite dreadnought or jumbo or instrument into a “balanced” signal classical into its corresponding pedal, and you get a very that’s compatible with the church’s good approximation of your guitar’s unplugged sound. Best sound system. Though many mixing of all, this “microphone-like” tone doesn’t come with the boards allow you to plug straight in, baggage of feedback! using a DI on the platform means the Though EQ curves and pre-programmed algorithms can signals coming from instruments and make a guitar sound great, today’s standalone modeling microphones are all consistent when and effects units allow you to coax an incredible array of they connect to the PA. Even if you’re sounds out of your acoustic or electric instrument. The an electric guitar or bass player, you number of effects that can be applied is simply staggering, and, believe it or not, as modeling technology has gotten >> BOSS $ 00 more advanced, it’s now easier to pack those effects into MO-2 More info on pg. 132 smaller and smaller effects units. One big advantage you
3199
699
699
Worship Sound Pro 101 Guides
Since a click is involved, I’d assume it’s important for the team to use in-ear monitors. Yes. Using floor wedges at your church would be a barrier to running a click track or MultiTracks. There are many benefits to making the transition overall, which is why more churches every day are going with an in-ear setup. If you have a live drummer who has to turn up a floor monitor up loud enough to hear it over his drums, then everyone around him has to do the same. Suddenly, you have a
The Basics of
Building a Mix
get from m modeling effects (Line 6’s POD standalone units, Amp or PA? exam mp is the ability to get the sound of your favorite for example) Since the primary goal of amplifying an acoustic guitar guitar ar amp am while plugging straight into your church’s sound is to retain as much of the guitar’s natural character as system. em. This Th means you get total control over your stage possible, it’s important that your acoustic amplifier provide volume me and an tone — and you don’t have to lug that hefty It’sofbound to happen at some point: mix disaster. Maybe church’s regular a verythe clean, transparent sound. So whyyour not simply run your amplifier the platform. lifier on and off instrument directly into the sound system? While that’s a sound person calls in sick at the last minute. Maybe the new volunteer sound person perfectly fine solution for many worship leaders (especially Big g To Tone from a Small Package soloaperformers or smallor acoustic ensembles), thosefrom playing doesn’t know a volume slider from sliding door, a mixing board a mixing Sometimes, etime however, there’s no substitute for the sound acoustic guitar in full-band setups or on larger stages and response of an honest-to-goodness guitar amplifier. The respo bowl. Whatever the circumstance,benefit something has to be donesound to save the service. from the control and focused they get from a be trick is being able to coax peak performance out of your dedicated acoustic amp. Many of amps include Without sound, the congregation won’tcombo be engaged orthese inspired by the music, amp without shaking the wallsdecent of your church and drowning with extensive EQ controls for fine-tuning your tone, as well as out your message. As recording guitarists and studio m and the message may be completely lost. onboard filters that hold feedback at bay. Amps with built-in engineers nee can tell you, the secret to big tone, oddly enough, neers effects let you add even more body and depth to your lies in amp —creating especially you relysound on classic n using usin in a smallThough maythe notneed be perfect — forewarning the team that theif perfect mix for a service a theysystem sound.isPlus, eliminate for a complicated signal tube-powered units forart, thata rich, sustaining tone. A small e-pow everything may not be ideal willThough go a long way toward true sound person with little or no mixing experience chain running through outboard effects pedals. single-speaker combo ampachieve is relatively toclarity transport e-spe easingpack the plenty processof for everyone. least they will know can still goodeasy sonic and and deliver the message acoustic combo amps sonic punch At from a small move, you immediate access to volume e, and its controls tostill expect! withgive pleasant and effective audio. Here are some tips for largerwhat enclosure, rooms require sound reinforcement and tone adjustments. Using lower power levels, or wattage saving the day with a quick, last-minute mix —from whether a PA system. That’s where your amp’s built-in direct means theworking amplifier’s and ns you n yo can “drive” you are thepower sound section booth yourself or have thecomes help in.4. Turn it on. output speaker, the of the amp’s dynamic response ker, getting ker g of benefits a volunteer. on the speakers or the amplifiers last; this prevents loud and full-sounding tone without blasting the congregation full-s -so Using YourTurn Amp’s Direct Output thumps and pops from coming through the system. and overpowering the rest ofityour worship team. If you need overp 1. Keep simple. Most dedicated acoustic guitar and bass amplifiers include more e than just one great sound from your amp, consider balanced direct outputs, giving the option of running Unfortunately, mix emergencies rarely occur when you have 5. Reset theyou mixing board. a multichannel amplifier (usually equipped with separate ultic ulticha your church’s PA system without sacrificing loads of sparesounds, time to as work solution — it your rig throughBegin controls distorted wellonasatone rolss for f clean and by pulling all the volume sliders (faders) down to the is control and sound you get onstage. Several electric guitar almost always happens minutes before controls reverb adjustments) or even that most recentthe of service rolss and a zero. (Usually these are found at the bottom of each (especially modeling amps) with direct-out capability supposed to start. While your have racks amplification developments, the modeling amp.sound booth maycombos lificcat channel on the mixer.) Set the channel gain to a mid are now also available — some even include speaker emulation, of processors and sophisticated audio equipment, is position (Usually this knob is found at the top of each sending very realistic amp tones straight to the PA. Using not the time to You experiment with effects or to randomly How wM Many Amps Do Need? channel on the mixer.) Next, reset all the equalization (tone) your output doesn’t just let you “have your start turning knobs. Focus on the bare minimum youamp’s directcontrols on the mixer to their center position, which is Small ll mod modeling combo amps provide a two-fold solution for ampfor and play it too”; it also allows you to handle the sound need to get the job done. Leave the special effects essentially off. Turn the auxiliary or monitor sends off. Make worship The first is versatility. Packed with multiple ship guitarists. g level that reaches your gathering. You can enjoy getting the another time. sure that mute or solo buttons are disengaged. (Usually amp sounds soun and effects, a modeling amp can literally take you sound you want on the platform, while your church’s sound these buttons are off in the up position.) Set the master from clean sounds to uplifting, sustaining lead m shimmering shim engineer can make a mix that’s ideal for the room. All these 2. Use what’s already there. volume fader to about 50%. toness in se seconds (and a footswitch is often included, so you great sound tools help to make playing guitar or bass in the soundyou system already set up, the cables and can make changes Hopefully, on the fly).your Secondly, don’tis have to give worship environment a more inspiring experience for you — run to andout theof monitors are tuned 6. Begin testing each sound source up portability and the low snake stage are volume to the get mixer, the most ortab and your listeners. to prevent feedback. Plugto the mics into these amps are voiced provide verythe mixer or snake e amps; amp in fact,inmodeling through the mains. inversions their usual positions. Try to useemulate, the same “old standby” consistent-sounding of the amplifiers they istent Have the main vocalist speak or sing into his or her mic. microphones andthe other gear you usually even — try coaxing same sustaining leaduse — again, now is n at low lo volumes Bring up the volume slider until you can hear the vocals in not the time experiment new gear! tones ampto stack that you with can get from es from a real 100-watt the main speakers. Turn up the auxiliary or monitor sends a preset ese set on o your modeling combo! Plugging into a small 3. you Have conversation the worship team. until the vocalist can hear himself or herself in the monitors. modeling callaup pretty much anywith tone you eling ing combo lets As you verify that each mic or source works, pull its volume need performance. And the very d forr a worshipExplain to everyone that thecompact regular size sound person is not fader back down to zero. You can leave the aux (monitor) and lightt weight ofavailable such a combo makes it is a snap to get w and that help required to have the service go sends turned up so that the singers can hear themselves. To on and off of the platform let’s not forget nd of well. Thisquickly. meansAnd guitarists need to turn down, drummers prevent feedback, don’t run the stage monitors too loud. the bass player, as there plenty volume, of great-sounding, p need are to control and so on. Explain that the monitor highly modeling combo bass amps available ly portable por that can hold their own on any stage. h
Call us today at (800) 222–4700
There are other websites out there that offer audio files for accompaniment. How does MultiTracks.com do things differently? Beyond the sheer size of our catalog, the quality of the original master recordings is amazing. There are also demos and quite a bit of free content on our site, which can help people get started. As does Sweetwater, we place a high value on supporting our customers, and we have a knowledgeable staff of engineers and trainers who can answer your questions and get you up and running right away.
bunch of monitors onstage that are louder than the sound system in the house, and the click track in those monitors would bleed into the house. Going with in-ears gives the mix control back to your sound person, and you have the added benefit of being able to mix in some individual MultiTracks with your live sound. If I’m a worship leader and I want to make my team comfortable working with MultiTracks and click tracks, what would you recommend? Great question. Though it’s not difficult, it does take time to transition your team. The first time you learned to drive a stick shift, it was really awkward because you were used to doing it a different way — then it became familiar and you wondered how you ever did without it. We have people on our worship team who were reluctant to use a click track because they weren’t used to having it in their ears. Give it some time, and you won’t even really hear it anymore — you become used to it. Now, using MultiTracks is a different story in my opinion. It makes the mix in your in-ears and the front of house sound amazing!
Can you walk us through the options that MultiTracks.com offers? We offer three core options: MultiTracks, LiteTracks, and Rehearsal Mixes. MultiTracks aren’t simply accompaniment tracks; they’re often the original stems from the original recordings. The cool thing about these tracks is that you can essentially have the entire recording up there — the exact same stems the artists use during performances — on the platform, ready for you to add your own parts. You can also get LiteTracks, which are premixed stereo MP3 files from original sessions. On the left side of the stereo field is a click; on the right are synths, strings, pads, and sounds that enhance the worship band’s performance of the song. You can put LiteTracks on your iPod or other player.
MultiTracks are actual stems of audio, often from original recordings. Can you tell us how the MultiTracks are controlled by software or hardware? How much flexibility do you have with the arrangements? The MultiTracks that you download from our website can be played in any DAW or music software that can play multiple audio files at one time. We have users of just about every software — Ableton, Studio One, Pro Tools, Digital Performer… the list goes on. If you’re just triggering the tracks to start and stop, and don’t need to jump around from section to section, then most DAWs will work great. We have lots of training videos on this concept on our MultiTracks blog.
Rehearsal Mixes let your team members hear the parts they’ll be playing louder in the mix, so it’ll be easier for them to learn what they should be playing. It’s an effective rehearsal tool that helps reduce practice time. Rehearsal Mixes are very affordable, and you can even buy credits in bulk to bring the price of each down even further. Tell us about the resources and tutorials available at the MultiTracks.com website. Our blog is full of training and tutorials specifically geared toward worship leaders, and you can sign up for more in-depth training and screen-sharing assistance as well. I would encourage people to take a couple of hours and dive into learning a software program. I think they’ll be blown away by how it benefits their live sound. We’re grateful that we’ve been able to help thousands of worship leaders make the transition, and we’re constantly hearing about the difference it makes for their church. Thank you for talking with us! Anything else you’d like to add? We have free demo content if you just register for an account with us online. Plus, there is a Free Content section with click tracks and loop tracks that you can download without an account. We’ve made it really easy to try this out with your team, and we’re always adding new songs to the catalog. We’re definitely here to help any way we can.
Can you trigger these files via MIDI from, say, a keyboard controller or a MIDI foot controller? Yes. Many musicians run MultiTracks from the stage this way. It helps if all your musicians are onstage so that you can cue everyone together. If a guitar player is leading worship and triggering the tracks, he or she might want to use a foot controller,, which is easyy to pprogram within most anyy DAW. Or yyou could assign g g the pads or knobs on your MIDI keyboard to fire off the tracks from your keyboard. way, you’re never touching the laptop laptop. This way
StudioLive 32.4.2 A powerful hardware/ software mixing solution, the StudioLive mixer and Studio ether th to t let l t you run your One software work together MultiTracks operations and get great main and personal monitor mixes.. Plus, wireless integration th your iOS device! lets you take control with UM3X RC IIn-ear nn-ear monitors ar are ccritical to work working with MultiTracks. These M The iisolating is solating earph earphones allow eeach membe member of the team companimen and the live to hear the click, the accompaniment, instruments and vocals clearly. A360 Thanks to convenient, full-featured ull-featured ppersonal mixers such as Aviom’s A360, each performer on cust in-ear the platform gets his or her own custom monitor mix. m The result? rres monitor More c dent andd consistent confid c confident pe erformaances! performances!
Phillip Ed Philli Edwards ards d The founder and CEO of MultiTracks.com, Phillip is a worship leader and a musician with professional touring g exper p ience. experience. Since launching MultiTracks com in MultiTracks.com 2006, Phillip has been teaching and training at worship conferences around the country on the concept of running MultiTracks to achieve a professional sound in any size church.
NEW
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Can you address potential copyright issues with these stems/loops? A download from MultiTracks includes a limited license for live performance at your house of worship. We cover the royalties for use of the master as well as for RSS SS V-MIXING publishing. Though you can perform the song as many times as you like at your YSTEM SYSTEM church, the license does not allow you to use the tracks for streaming over the Internet or for recording purposes.
Photo by Jon James and Troy Behrens
7. Have the worship team begin to play a song. ng. Watch for red overload or “clip” lights on the mixer. If you ou see these, turn down the gain controls at the top of that source’s channel.
8. Build the mix by bringing up the volume faders for the basics first. Start with the bass drum and the bass guitar, turning them up to a comfortable level and balancing them against one another. You may need to adjust the level of the master volume fader to get the overall level to the right point.
9. Turn up the volume faders for the vocals. Now focus on the vocals. Set them to a comfortable level, balanced against the bass guitar and the bass drum. The lead vocalist needs to be the loudest, with the background or harmony vocals filling in behind.
10. Turn up the volume faders on the other instruments. One at a time, begin turning up the other instruments. Start with the rest of the drums, then the guitars, the pianos, the keyboards, and any other instruments. Adjust the volume as needed. Balance each one against the vocals, the bass drum, and the bass guitar. This is a place where you can err on the side of being conservative. The vocals are the main focus, and you want to ensure that they are clearly audible. Use the other instruments to fill around the vocals, without obscuring them. As you go, adjust the master volume fader to control the overall level.
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spikes in sound. Ask each worship team member what he or she needs to hear from the monitors — one at a time so that everyone doesn’t speak at once — and adjust the auxiliary sends accordingly.
13. Don’t try to overtune the mix, and don’t make it too loud. Set things up so that they are clean and clear, and at a comfortable, conservative volume level. Then stop! Once you get to the point where it sounds okay — this should happen fairly quickly — stop tweaking the knobs. It’s easy to lose perspective and get lost in knob turning, even though the goal has already been achieved.
14. Here’s a final tip. When in doubt, focus on making the vocals, whether spoken or sung, clearly audible. The congregation is there to hear the message, which is contained in the words and lyrics. The music is inspiring and essential to a great service, but it plays just a supporting role in the grand scheme of things. Ensure that the vocals are heard, and the service will be a success!
11. It’s time for the equalizers. Up to this point, we haven’t touched the equalizers (tone controls) on the mixer. If you find that the sound is getting too bassy or boomy, use the “low” or bass tone control to reduce the bass frequencies a small amount on instruments such as bass guitar, keyboards, and piano. Vocalists, especially male vocalists, may also need their bass reduced a small amount. To increase the clarity of a vocal or an instrument, add a small amount of treble or high frequencies by using the tone controls on that mixer channel. Be careful with the tone controls, as overuse can lead to feedback!
12. Fine-tune the mix and the monitors. Adjust volume levels so that instruments and vocals are balanced, and adjust the bass and the treble controls on channels channe nels as necessary to prevent boominess, harshness, or
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See the latest gear from this year’s Winter NAMM show! Sweetwater and MultiTracks show you the best new products to enhance your worship services.
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Editor’s Corner
Showing Up in Fort Wayne, Indiana
I am on a plane flying to Chicago, and then it is a three-hour car rental drive to Fort Wayne, Indiana for my first time attending Sweetwater Sound’s GearFest event. I have a booth there for the magazines and they are graciously allowing me to sell our t-shirts too (“Love One Woman… Many Guitars” etc.).
JULY/AUG 2013
Features
8 Product Review By Mitch Bohannon I’m really not sure what to expect. Normally I would fly right over Larose 1 Ton Hollow Boy
Indiana on my way to somewhere else. Sweetwater is not only a good advertiser of ours, but they are the third largest retailer in the United States and they are church friendly. This is a big event that they put on (5000 - 6,000 attendees – all free admission) and they have asked me to host a seminar with the folks from Vertical Worship (also driving up from Chicago) about co-writing worship songs for your congregation. It should be interesting. GearFest has a lot of musical equipment companies exhibiting there and it is my hope that I can build some relationships and garner some new advertisers for the magazines and exhibitors for our own Christian Musician Summit conferences. A magazine’s two resources are advertising and subscriptions, so thank you for subscribing to us – you make a difference!
As Judy and I were getting me packed the night before we were discussing the merits of the trip, and since I have never been there before it was hard to gauge if it would be a big success or possibly a big flop. It gave me a chance to speak out loud again a life principle I have quoted many times to myself and to others: “Half of life is showing up and seeing what the Lord has for you. If you don’t show up, you won’t find out”. Now, like all advice, we have to take it with a grain of salt. We need to see how it applies to our own lives, and of course the Word of God trumps all of man’s wise and/or not so wise comments. But I have found situations, in key moments of my life, where that saying has proved itself valid for me.
10 From the Drummer’s Perspective By Carl Albrecht The Drummer & Percussionist: Two heads are better than one? Or the two headed monster! 12 Keyboard By Ed Kerr Amazing Grace Revisited 15 Bass By Gary Lunn All At Once 16 Vocals By Sheri Gould It’s Just Not the Right Time
VOL. 11, ISSUE 4 40 Guitar Grab Bag By Doug Doppler Ringing True 42 The Band By Tom Lane Jukebox Worship 44 Camera By Craig Kelly Thinking of Going Professional as a TV Operator? 46 Playing the Mandolin By Martin Stillion Meet Kenny Hutson 50 Percussion By Mark Shelton Cajon & Djembe: Accessorize The Groove
52 Worship Team Training By Branon Dempsey I Gotta Have More 18 Tips for Tight Teams Cowbell! By Sandy Hoffman Undoing the Awkward Scrub the Scowl For someone who is involved in several entrepreneurial adventures Moments in Worship (Wearing the Face Of Grace) (publishing, conferences, producing concerts, and vintage guitar shows) there is always a bit of uncertainty and a call for a measure of faith to forge ahead. I like to speak out loud the “show up in life” principle. Will that slogan find it’s way onto a t-shirt some day for me? I don’t know. But it is comforting to talk with my wife about it and see that she understands this part of me (I love you Judy!).
I’ll have a lot of time to think about this while I drive from Chicago to Fort Wayne, but one thing is clear… I am on my way to “showing up” and I trust God that He has something good there for us. As a devotional closer – do you have anything you need to be “showing up” for? Let us know how it turns out. Until then… Lord Bless Ya! Bruce & Judy
4227 S. Meridian. Suite C PMB #275 Puyallup, Washington 98373-5963 Phone: 253.445.1973 Fax: 253.655.5001 Email: bruce@christianmusician.com Website: www.worshipmusicianmagazine.com Publisher/Editor: Bruce Adolph Vice President: Judy Adolph Customer Service: Brian Felix brian@christianmusiciansummit.com Copyediting: Kevin Wilber Design Layout & Production: Matt Kees Advertising Sales: Bruce Adolph bruce@christianmusician.com • 253-445-1973 Worship Musician! is published bi-monthly by The Adolph Agency, Inc.
26 Songchart By Martin Smith Waiting Here for You 30 Record Reviews By Gerod Bass • Hillsong Live • BJ Putnam • Aaron Shust • David Crowder Band
54 A Few Moments With... Jerome Daley The New Blended Where Skinny Jeans and Gray Hair Meet
34 FOH Engineer By Bill Gibson Cable Considerations 36 Ministry + Artistry = Profitability? Creating your MAP™ By Scott A. Shuford Crafting the Right Marketing Mix on a Budget 38 The Worship Community By Doug Doppler Friendship, Not Just Fellowship
Interview 20 Dancing Back to the Start: an interview with Martin Smith by Aimee Herd
WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM JULY/AUG 2013
7
PRODUCT REVIEW
By Mitch Bohannon
Larose 1 Ton Hollow Boy It seems like there are many new custom guitar builders out there these days. For many of them, unless you are able to attend a big guitar show, folks like you only hear about them through word-of-mouth. Well, here’s one to get you talking…that is, if you can find the right words. I think that’s why I struggled to start this article. It’s more like I just wanted to say, “Here, just play it.” Enough said! Let me put this in perspective real quickly. I’m currently playing an incredible custom built Tyler Mongoose. I worked directly with James Tyler to get a guitar tailored just for me. If you’re unfamiliar with that guitar, take a sec and look it up to see where I’m coming from. My son, Sam, and I had the pleasure of “assisting” Bruce at the Dallas Guitar show again last April. (It’s hard to call it working when it’s so much fun!) At the
show, Sam and I were able to give this Larose 1 Ton Hollow Boy a test. Normally, I will tryout guitars by using them on a Sunday morning. But, to tell you the truth, this guitar, as well as just about everything else that Todd D’Agostino had at the show, was sold. Todd is the builder and mastermind behind Larose Guitars and was very kind to take time and explain all the ins and outs of this guitar build and the details he put into it. First, my impression, and then the specs… This 1 Ton Hollow Boy has a familiar Tele shape with some distinct sweet qualities. The semihollow body made the guitar very lightweight, and it sat comfortably balanced in my hands. Even though it is visually striking and unique, that was overshadowed by the sweet tone and feel of the guitar. It is absolutely a joy to play! The responsiveness was simply top-shelf. I had Sam play for me while I listened and studied the guitar. I know I just stated that the tone overshadowed the beauty of the guitar, but I’ve got to say (looking back at the pictures I was taking) this guitar is gorgeous! The tone, the sustain…both are so pleasant. I am more of a rhythm player, so Todd’s guitar tech made a quick adjustment to the pickup height and it was perfect for me! This would be a fantastic guitar to lead worship with! Everything is customizable with Larose, but the standard specs on this 1 Ton Hollow Boy are…. A Curly Sapele top with swamp ash semihollow body, Rock Maple neck, and Madagascar Ebony fingerboard,
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Tone Pro Kluson tuners, Lollar Vintage T neck and bridge pickups (get this… Todd inlay’s the pickups to match the pick guard – amazing!). Study the picture…look at the details! Twentyone frets on a 25 ½ inch scale neck. Nut-width is 1 11/16. Weight will vary depending on wood choices… this one is about five pounds (a very comfortable weight). A stand-out to me and a signature design of Todd’s is the gentle contour that flows beautifully from the neck around the body to right at the strap-button. I really love the uniqueness that makes the Larose guitars a work of art. When you order a guitar from Larose, I assure you that Todd will listen to your needs and build a guitar that will be all you hoped it could be. List price on the 1 Ton Hollow Boy is $4250. If you’re in the market for a new electric and don’t want another that you’ve already had, and you’re looking for something that is…you. I’m here to tell you, I’ve played it, it’s amazing, you won’t be disappointed. Here, just play it. Enough said. www.larose-guitars.com
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FROM THE DRUMMER’S PERSPECTIVE By Carl Albrecht
The Drummer & Percussionist:
Two heads are better than one? Or the two headed monster! I’ve been very fortunate to work with some amazing musicians. Drummers, percussionists, and other players have made the job of creating music a sheer delight. On the other hand, there have been moments of extreme frustration when a musician was not grooving or connecting with the band. It could be a technical problem. Like a player not keeping good time, playing too loudly, or not playing the proper part or style. Sometimes it’s an emotional thing. Like someone thinking too highly of themselves (arrogance) or just not caring about what they are doing (boredom). Either way it makes for a bad day for the band. For a drummer and percussionist to work together well, every aspect has to be in place. Both players must really be “locked in” to the tempo. Dynamically, they need to sound like one unit. Their parts must be carefully arranged to work well with each other, and to complement the rest of the group. And it helps if they have at least a good working relationship, if not a real friendship. As a drummer, I look for the percussionist to “weave” their playing into mine. The drummer is still “driving the bus” so to speak. The percussionist should never try to push or pull the tempo around. They should always try to line up their time and feel to what the drummer is doing. I want their part to complement what I am playing and in general make the music sound great! When I’m playing percussion, I always remind myself that the drummer is the Christmas tree and I’m the ornaments. In this case, we need to see more green than silver, if you catch my drift. ;-) I’ve heard percussionists say that their drummer doesn’t play well and that they HAVE to overpower them to make the music work. That could be true, but my first recommendation is to make every attempt to work it out before taking over. Get with your drummer and start practicing with a metronome or drum loops. Communicate with each other. Build a relationship where you think as a team and learn to help each other. Music never seems to feel really good when there is a musical or personal battle on stage. *More on this later. I can always tell when the percussionist is NOT listening to what the drummer or the rest of the band is doing. The part they play might conflict with the hi-hat or ride cymbal part. Maybe they are playing too busy. Filling every space with some sound effect or percussion fill is like having too much salt in your soup! In a case like this, I will actually have a little chat with my drum/percussion partner. I always try to be an encourager. It never helps to yell at someone or project negative emotions into the environment. There is a spiritual lesson here, but for the sake of time, let’s just focus on the technical stuff. I will actually discuss with the percussionist about how we arrange our parts for the music we’re playing. I might ask them to NOT play for a section. Maybe they should just color the 1st verse and chorus with sound effects, and not do any “groove” parts until verse 2. It all depends on THE MUSIC! What does the music
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really require? If there is a recording, both players should be copying what was already “composed.” Yes, I think of recorded music as a composition. Unless the leader asks for some other interpretation, play the part that already exists for the song. This is always my “default setting” for playing music. If we are creating a part for a song I listen very carefully to what the rest of the band is doing to try to find the drum part. Then the percussion concepts should fit into that. Yes, there are times we might build from a percussion idea first. Percussion grooves are everywhere in contemporary music. Even more so now with the use of drum machines, drum loops, and sequencing. It is a great time to be a drummer and percussionist, but ALL of the musicians must be serving the song. If what we play does not make the song work well, it’s just noise! When setting up I prefer the percussionist to be on my right side and the bass player to my left (the hi-hat side). This allows for the percussionist to hear the kit clearly and to have a visual connection to my right side. For me, the right hand will be dictating a lot of the time keeping (hi-hat & ride cymbal patterns). I’ve always found this helpful when setting up a drum and percussion duo in the band. It is definitely my preference when playing percussion. When that’s not possible, I still make sure I have a good sight line to the drummer, and I’m very careful about getting a good monitor mix. You have to hear well to play well. I mentioned earlier about keeping a positive atmosphere. There should be no personal or musical battles on stage. Make sure you are communicating well with the percussionist or drummer. CAN WE TALK?! Commit together to serve the music and the other players to the best of your abilities. If you can’t agree on what you’re playing, always use the original recordings as a reference. Also, be sure the worship leader or artist is happy with what they are hearing. It is NOT about you! Never think about getting noticed or trying to “be cool.” If you are playing great music, and striving to make the whole group sound great, you will automatically gain the respect of everyone. A great tool for checking out your sound is to record everything you play. I’ve mentioned this in other drum articles, but it is really true for every player. As a percussionist, you can get a true perspective of what you sound like when hearing the recording from any event you play. Be objective when you listen and decide if what you’re playing really works with the music. If not, be mature enough to make the proper adjustments. You might notice your shaker or tambourine patterns don’t line up or “groove” well. Listen carefully! Do you need to push your time more or layback to make the music feel good. Are you too loud or too soft? Do you need to leave out some ideas because there is just too much going on? Hearing a recording of yourself is one of the most
educational tools you can use. Be brave and do what ever it takes to improve your work. One practical thing I look for in a percussionist is the way they angle the shaker or tambourine. The more perfectly level you play a pattern with these instruments, the more even the rhythm will sound. If you use more of an up and down hill kind of stroke the rhythm will swing more. Try it next time you practice. Take a shaker and play a simple pattern as evenly as possible. Notice the more you point your stroke towards the floor the more “uneven” or “swinging” the pattern will sound. Then come back to a perfect horizontal stroke and listen to the difference. This simple exercise well help you learn to control the feel of your groove. Try this also with a tambourine. It’s an “eye opening” experience. Another common percussion mistake is to use the wrong style of grooves with the music you play. If you play real legit “Latin” percussion patterns in pop or rock songs, they may not fit. Even if you play them perfectly, they still may not work with the music. Again, the contemporary percussionist must know how to blend all of the styles they know and find just the right “musical” concept to fit with what the song requires. You might have to play some very strange combination of instruments or patterns to create the right vibe. In my set up, I use a set of 3 congas, a pair of bongos, two timbales, a djembe, a doumbek, a big low drum, an udu drum, a talking drum, several triangles, cowbells, woodblocks, aggogo bells, several wind chimes, assorted cymbals, gongs, and several cases of percussion toys. I even collect saw blades, seashells, metal and plastic pipes, and other weird noisemakers. One of my favorite sounds is a hitting or shaking a “garden weasel.” It’s that weird tool you’ve seen on T.V. Leann didn’t care to use it in the garden, but I love the sound it makes. Anything can be used as a percussion instrument, just be sure it works “musically.” Developing your drum & percussion team into a great music machine will make you an honored duo in your band. Stay humble and focus on making the music sound great and you will never be accused of being a twoheaded monster. You can truly be proof that two heads are better than one. Psalm 133 – “How good and pleasant it is when we “groove” together in unity.” The New King “Carl” Version (NKCV) Blessings, Carl P.S. check out some fun drum & percussion ideas on the project I did with the pop jazz group Quad Venti @ www.quadventi.com Carl Albrecht has been a professional drummer & percussionist for over 25 years. He has played on over 70 Integrity Music projects; Maranatha Praise Band recordings & numerous other Christian, Pop, Country, Jazz & commercial projects. He currently lives in Nashville doing recording sessions, producing, writing and continuing to do various tours & seminar events. Visit his website: www.carlalbrecht.com or send an e-mail to: lmalbrecht@aol.com.
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SOUND LEGACY
KEYBOARD FIGURE 1 By Ed Kerr
Amazing Grace Revisited
FIGURE 2
Have you noticed that on modern worship recordings it’s quite common for songwriters and worship leaders to include a portion of a hymn in a new worship song, or give a hymn’s lyric a new melody and harmonization? Sometimes, though, the hymn is simply presented with a modern arrangement. I thought I’d give you some tips here on how to create your own arrangement for a hymn. “Amazing Grace” has resonated with believers for hundreds of years, and I’ll use it for my examples. The goal with this arrangement will be for it to fit within a set consisting of modern worship songs. That said, there are things I can do even in my intro that can either support or detract from that goal. First and foremost, my arrangement won’t feel modern if I play the hymn’s melody, like in Figure 1.
FIGURE 3
What would work for the intro then? Listen to arrangements of modern worship songs and you’ll often hear a melodic “hook” presented in the intro. Note that this hook is not a melody from the song itself. Examples to check out: Paul Baloche’s “The Same Love”, Chris Tomlin’s “Whom Shall I Fear”, Phil Wickham’s “Cannons”. Here’s a melodic hook for my intro that avoids the hymn’s melody (Figure 2). As you create arrangements featuring hooks, do what you hear arrangers doing on recordings. Reuse the hook. When the first verse of the hymn ends, bring back the hook. Like in Figure 3.
FIGURE 4
In this example I’m applying the principle of truncation. Truncation means to shorten by cutting something off. Musically speaking, I’m cutting off the two bars that would normally end this phrase. Here’s the phrase without truncation (Figure 4). There’s a very significant difference in the musical momentum in this example. Use your discretion in deciding whether or not to truncate the end of the verse, but I definitely prefer the truncated example. This truncation causes the return of the intro’s hook to be much more musically significant than it is in the example without truncation.
FIGURE 5
Any melodic instrument could play the hook. Whoever plays it should be intentionally literal. Quote it exactly as it was first stated. That’s the value of the hook. It sounds familiar. If you improvise on the melody it takes away from the sense of definition it gives the section. Here’s a example of what you might play during a verse (Figure 5) Visit my website, kerrtunes.com, to hear all of these examples played and to download a chart of a full arrangement.
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As a songwriter Ed has written over 100 songs with Integrity Music. He has a Masters Degree in piano performance. Ed and his family live in Washington State. Ed plays Yamaha’s Motif XS8. www.kerrtunes.com
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BASS By Gary Lunn
All At Once It has been my privilege to meet and ask questions of some great bassists through the years. One of my questions is always, “How do you come up with your bass lines?” Taking in all of that valuable information, I believe that I have come up with my own personal approach to playing a song. I will try to share it with you to the best of my ability so that hopefully, your experiences with your worship team, band, or session can go more smoothly for you. Music Ed. Scholastically speaking, I have not had too much formal education, yet I continue to learn through new experiences (both good and bad) on a daily basis. I took one year of music theory in college, but the class that really helped me the most was called “sight singing” (another name for “ear training”). This class taught me how to interpret intervals (the half-step/ whole-step relationship between notes) and helped me make the correlation between intervals, the lines and spaces on the staff, and the fret positions on my bass. This opened up the world of reading music notation for me, especially in the realm of chord spelling and arpeggios. Up until that point, having perfect pitch had always inhibited me from learning how to read music. This class helped me the most. Planning the Bass Line Approach Playing a bass line is not just about dazzling the listener from bar one. It’s completely about the song as a whole, conceptually. Yes, there are many types and styles of songs, but my approach to playing a mid-tempo rock ballad is a formula that can be applied to many different types of songs. Section by Section The intro of a song of this genre can be played at many dynamic levels. It can be very powerful, softening down for the first verse, or the intro can be very sparse. If the intro begins at a low dynamic level, you probably will want to “lay out” until somewhere later in the song, entering at either the pre-chorus (if the song has one) or the first chorus. At that point you might want to consider playing in the mid or high octave, playing the root note for the duration of each chord. Another approach would be to sensitively play a subtle, melodic
line that doesn’t interfere with the vocal melody. Remember, less is always more when playing fills around the melody of the song. Depending on the arrangement of the song, if there is a re-intro (or turn around) between the first chorus and the second verse, be aware of the intensity and attitude of the song at that point. This will help you determine whether-or-not the re-intro should be played aggressively, moderately, or lightly. Usually by the second verse, the dynamic level will be considerably louder. A kick drum pattern should be established between the bass and the drums. The element of the song that helps me derive a suggestion for the kick drum pattern for the song lies in the rhythm of the lead (vocal) melody. A lighter option for the second verse is to play longer bass notes sustaining over the kick pattern, only playing a new note when the chord’s root note changes. This works very well when the song doesn’t need to be too big dynamically, but the need for a backbeat is obvious. By the second chorus, the dynamic level is usually at a moderate level, a full groove is established, and a snare hit (or alternate snare) is on all 2’s and 4’s. The object at this point is to maintain restraint to the best of your ability. Just hold the groove together. Don’t play any fills, runs, or busy transition licks. Let the song simmer in the groove so that everyone feels secure and the pocket feels good. You may want to maintain a simpler pattern leaving a significant amount of space in your pattern so that the song can “breathe.” Often, I lift off the notes right when the backbeats “hit” so that the snare can be clearly heard (drummers love this…). I think you will find that its very effective, but you have to do it consistently over the duration of a four or eight-bar phrase. In typical song form, it’s probably about time for the bridge (if there is one). If so, try to interpret what the lyric is saying. Is it a tender, introspective moment? Or is it a declaration/proclamation of intense emotion? If it is a lighter moment, you may want to either drop out completely or move to a mid-to-high octave, playing sparsely and rhythmically. If it is a “big” bridge, it might be a good time for eighth
notes or a combination of the chorus kick pattern and a slide added in every other bar. You just have to go with your feelings for the song. At this point there might be a guitar/ keyboard solo in which you need to maintain a dynamic level that keeps energy up, but not too busy so that the soloist can soar above the foundation. Remember, the solo is for the soloist, not the bassist. Your job IS the foundation - a solid foundation Now it is usually time for the last chorus. There could be a break down at this point in the song where you might want to lay out completely (especially possible if the bridge was big, dynamically). Again, this will have to be your call (or the producer’s) in the moment. When the band re-enters, try playing the lowest root notes you have and play them with thunderous confidence in whatever driving pattern you feel is needed. If there is a place where you can play that lick you’ve been hearing in your head, go ahead and play it, being careful to choose the most tasteful opportunity to play it in. If you play “your lick,” think ahead and be mindful of the correct root note to land on at the beginning of the next phrase. If you make a mistake and miss the correct root after your fill, it can cause quite a train wreck, completely killing the momentum of the song. The end if the song is crucial, being that it is the last thing people remember about a song. If it is driving, then drive it to the end! If it has a ritard leading up to the last downbeat of the song, always follow the drummer for the cue’s- no matter what! A Suggestion This “formula” that I have suggested to you is just a suggestion. It’s a song-format concept that I have developed through many years of listening and playing. It may not always apply, but I offer it to you as a starting place. There may be a few considerations in it that are new to you. If so, I hope that you find them useful. Simply summarized, sensitivity to every part of every song is critical when playing with a worship team. May God continue to bless the work of your hands! Gary is a session player/producer/writer in Nashville. Contact him either by Facebook or email at garylunn@me.com.
WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM JULY/AUG 2013
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VOCALS
By Sheri Gould
It’s Just Not the Right Time Recently, I have gotten a few inquiries with regard to singers and timing. Timing can be a tricky thing. I used to joke about the fact the most of the folks that I knew that had trouble with timing decided to become drummers…ahem. Of course that’s not exactly fair, but timing is something that has to be learned and practiced in order to be perfected. We can’t just take for granted that we’ll naturally “get it”. I liken it to singing harmony. Some people seem to be a complete “natural” at it, but are they really, or is it more likely the result of training and practice? I’d say that more of the latter and less of the former.
Additionally, my father played the organ. Night after night after dinner, while we cleaned the kitchen, I would hear my father play his familiar tunes. His left foot would keep time perfectly while he played out a nice bass line with the pedals. Later, when I was about 7, I also took organ lessons and learned how to play that rhythmic bass line throughout my songs. Then, of course, I started with the drumming lessons in fifth grade. So you can see how, by the time I reached marching band, I was just a “natural” at rhythm. In “Outliers”, a book written by Malcolm Gladwell, he makes the Believe it or not, way back in fifth grade assertion that it takes 10,000 hours to when kids were choosing instruments to be an expert at anything. I don’t know at learn in school, I chose the drums. (I what point I may have personally reached always wanted to march to my own beat that level with regard to hearing rhythm, I guess) Several years later in marching but I suspect that it may have been sooner band I was continually being asked by than the average girl my age, making me my director to play the bass drum—while appear more like a “natural”. marching. I balked at this since I was the This is not to say that raw ability never only girl and would have way preferred comes into play, but we tend to elevate to play the cool little snare riffs. When that in lieu of simple hard work. So what I questioned the director he said simply, can we do to develop timing skills? The “I’m sorry Sheri, but you’re the only one first thing is to learn to focus on things who can keep a steady beat”. Hmmm, OTHER than the vocals. So many singers was that inborn or inbred? In finding the are tuned into simply the melody and the answer we have to step back even further words of a song because they tend to in time… believe that those are the only things they My parents were dance instructors while need to learn. When I do vocal auditions, I was growing up. They worked for Arthur I believe it’s important to have a singer Murray and often invited couples to our audition three ways: acappella, with an home for private training. I can remember instrument, and with a track. The first my father always going through the same way shows me how good their intonation routine of sitting down with the couple is without relying on an instrument. The and asking them to “feel” the beat in the last way tells me whether or not they can music. He typically focused on the man hear rhythm and find their way through a because in ballroom dancing the man song with no lyrics. Both are helpful for was supposed to lead. If the guy didn’t get determining whether or not they are good the beat, they would be lost as a couple. listeners and independent singers. I can remember as a child beginning to hear the beat easily and wondering how it could be troublesome for a few of these adults. Soon my brothers and I were also learning how to dance and keep that rhythm ourselves.
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Try listening for each individual instrument, especially those that are providing a rhythmic foundation for the song. Learn how to count the music. One of the (many) downsides of not using music (and most teams today don’t) is that we don’t learn to count the music out. We don’t understand the musical value of a rest and how to count it out. Try finding the proper timing for a song: does it feel like it has a 2-beat, 3-beat, 4-beat, 6-beat (etc) feel? Then count out the spaces in the music where there are no vocals. These simple exercises will help to train your ear. Practice with a backing track. This will be the ultimate test for you since a backing track will not follow you. You will HAVE to learn to listen to the music, feel the beat, and count the rests. Record yourself with a track to see how well you are doing. If you can’t tell just yet, have someone else listen and tell you where you might be off the beat. Try using a “click track” while singing live: this is sometime helpful— not always. If the problem is slight, it may be just enough to keep someone on the beat. However, if a person has never really tuned in to the beat for the beat’s sake, then they may very well skip right over the click mentally and only listen for the other singers anyway. This can put a singer behind or at a serious disadvantage when there are no vocals going on. Sometimes a visual metronome can be more helpful for training purposes. The bottom line is: PRACTICE. This is something you CAN learn, but you need to take the time and invest in your skills as a singer—especially when it just doesn’t seem to come “naturally” to you.
If you are struggling with finding rhythm or staying on the beat, or if you have someone on your team that is, here are Sheri Gould is an some ideas to help strengthen their ear. internationally acclaimed vocal Spend time listening for the coach. With a degree from beat of the music - NOT the melody. the University of Ill, she has
been coaching since 1979 and leading worship since 1985. For weekly vocal tips, check out Sheri’s FB page at www.facebook.com/officialsherigould. For information on products, including instructional DVDs, check out http://sherigould.com
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TIPS FOR TIGHT TEAMS
by Sandy Hoffman
Scrub the Scowl
(Wearing the Face Of Grace) Have you ever been led in worship by POP QUIZ: a team which looks like they’d all rather (Come on, it’s easy: multiple guess!) be anywhere else, doing anything else Please choose from the following: A, B, but leading you? You’re sitting/standing or C. in the crowd expecting to be drawn into When the events near the end of Acts the palpable presence of God, but the chapter 7 took place, Stephen was: worship experience feels like they phoned it in. I know, it’s almost oxymoronic to A. enjoying a family picnic in the think that you could possibly be led by shade of the tamarisk trees on the lawn a team with a ‘tude like that, but it does of the Jerusalem city park. happen. The music sounds perfect, the B. in the tabernacle, euphorically mix is great, the song list powerful, but experiencing the most wonderful the look on their faces seems to say, “I just worship time of his life. lost my best friend,” or maybe “I have jury duty tomorrow!” I guess they could even C. about to be martyred by stoning for be thinking, “I wish I hadn’t gone out for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Mexican last night!” You get the drift. That’s right—C: martyred! Can you So we’ve established that in our busy, imagine the thoughts wildly spinning complicated lives, we all have plenty to in your own head under similar whine about, real or imagined. There are circumstances? Would you respond multitudes of reasons (excuses) for us to like Stephen, looking to heaven and be distracted from our focus to joyfully go finding peace in the presence of God, before the throne of God and take other or would you be frantically contemplating people with us. Something as simple as your terrestrial options, searching for a broken finger nail (guitar pickers), a tiff an expeditious way out of this soon-towith the spouse on the way to worship, be-life-terminating predicament? What or a sputtering PA cable can turn an expression would grace your face? Peace uplifting, positive time of worship into an or panic? Soft or scowled? Would you undesirable chore, clearly reflected in our manifest a shout of praise, or would it be facial expressions. more like a “pout of praise?” In a situation May I challenge you with the following like this, do you think your countenance Pop Quiz? First, read the scripture from would in-voke the presence of God or Acts chapter 7 verses 55 and 56, then would you further pro-voke those who the quiz. Perhaps this will encourage had already condemned you? us to re-prioritize and get that positive countenance back where it belongs—on our worship-faces. I’m sure you agree that if we’re leading others to worship God, we gotta try to wear the grace-face (even during the worst case scenarios)! But [Stephen], being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Acts 7:55 & 56 (NKJV)
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Psalm 16:11b says: “...in Your presence is fullness of joy...” The scripture doesn’t qualify where this presence occurs, it simply states that when we are in His presence there is fullness of joy. That joy most certainly must show on our faces, especially as we worship. If this is the case, why so often do we observe the glare of gloom or the frown of frustration in the worship environment? Shouldn’t we be intensely reflecting the glory of God? Perhaps it’s time, as worship team members, to commit to scrub the scowl! We should smile a bit more often, grimace
less. Not the plastic kind of smile pasted on the faces of unwilling participants, but a genuine reflection of the fullness of joy within us. Let’s beam the peace and presence of the Lord from the depths of our souls. How about we consider a new expression, reflecting in our worshipfaces the unfathomable riches of Christ? Surely the conditions of our worship surroundings would never compare to those which Stephen endured. And yet, he kept his gaze upward and his thoughts fixed on the Hope of Glory. I’m betting his executioners were perplexed by the grace on his face! EYES WIDE OPEN As Stephen was about to be put to death, he saw the glory of God. There was Jesus standing at the Father’s right hand. Because he was looking for it, he actually saw the heavens opened. Even as they stoned him, he was calling on the Savior, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” In Acts 6:5b it says that Stephen was “a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit.” He must have oozed worship and honor to God, in spite of the circumstances. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have more Stephens on our worship teams? How about we start with ourselves? By offering forgiveness to those who were taking his life, Stephen finished well. We too, as worship team members and leaders, have plenty to offer. Though we may never be called upon to lay down our lives in martyrdom, God has called us nonetheless to give ourselves away in worship, offering the fullness of His joy to others as we lead them to gaze into heaven and look for His glory. Scrubbin’ up, Sandy
Sandy Hoffman serves the worship community at Christ Church Santa Fe, NM and beyond. Find out more about his “Tips for Tight Teams” online at: www.WorshipWorks.com
Dancing Back to the Start
An Interview with
MARTIN SMITH by Aimee Herd
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photo by Marc Gilgen
Having been a Deliriou5? fan from the first time I heard the “Cutting Edge” compilation that was released here in the States, I was looking forward to chatting with Martin Smith about the release of his new solo album, “God’s Great Dance Floor-Step One”. He’s just as genuine in conversation as in his music, and after all these years, his passion to go where God leads him is still intense.
later use him. And there you are, being trained in the studio, and like your song “Shepherd Boy” off the new album says, “I was born to lift up a song of hope.”
pilgrimage really, meeting all these people. I knew inside of me that this was what I wanted to do with my life— something like what these guys were doing. They had a great influence. So that’s how I went from growing up in a Aimee Herd: Martin, what has this church where not much lively worship adjustment period been like for you, was going on—in fact, hardly any— first letting go of Deliriou5? after some to meeting all these people and them 17 years or so as a band, and now having a great influence over me; to pursuing music on your own? being filled with the Holy Spirit and Martin Smith: It’s been great actually, an encounter with God, it was such a but as you said it’s been an adjustment. different environment. The first year was kind of getting my AH: I think it’s so cool the way head together and wondering what I God strategically placed you at that was supposed to be doing—what God recording studio; like you said, it was would like me to do. Then over the next kind of like a boot camp for you, and three-year period it’s just kind of grown, it helped to lay the groundwork for all really. The songs didn’t stop coming, that you would do with Deliriou5? and and before I knew it I had a whole even in your music now. battery of songs with something to say. MS: Yeah, you’re totally right, when And that’s really been the transition. I look back, it’s hilarious when you AH: I’ve been reading your book, think that’s where God put me in. And I “Delirious” that you published a little learned so much; I learned about songs while back, and it’s been so interesting and studios and arrangements and to learn about your roots in terms of instrumentations—that really was my worship—the influence that Vineyard time being a “shepherd boy” out in the worship and Kevin Prosch had on field, learning and doing what I had to you—and how that developed into the do, and being faithful. Bit by bit God vision behind Deliriou5?. added to that. MS: Yeah, I was 17 when I left home It’s been a great life to look back on and began working in a recording in a sense—you know I’ve done a lot of studio—I was a trainee there. That looking back. And I think, wow yeah, really was a big start in the journey for it’s been a blessing. me, because I started to meet all these amazing Christian musicians from AH: It’s remarkable, and very much around the world. I met Andy Park, like David the shepherd boy out in the from Vineyard, then went to California fields, and he had no idea he was being and met Kevin Prosch—it was like a trained for what and where God would
MS: It’s great, and what’s interesting now is that I’m trying to do the same with other people. To create that feeling and environment for another generation to come through. I guess that’s the wonderful thing about the new record; it was all made by young, musical kids who really helped me. Not really super-polished professional musicians, but music students, who would hang out with me at the house and make music. I think you can hear that in the new recording, there’s just something, a little bit of life about it. AH: Definitely, it’s really relevant and current sounding, and yet it’s still worshipful at the same time. And it’s creative too. Like what you said in your book: “we learned that God was—and is—speaking through the music, and that our creativity should be unleashed in response to God...” You’ve always been very creative in musical expression, and as you tap into the next generation, such as with the new project, you’re passing that baton. MS: Yeah, it feels like a great season for me and my wife, Anna, too. Just using what we have, and just bringing a whole new lot of people through. There’s a lot of joy in that, actually. We’ve found it to be an incredibly joyful experience. And it won’t stop, we’re on a journey and this is what we’re going to do now. AH: In your book, you talked about the “packaging” of worship bands today, that too often they don’t get noticed unless their image is right and how odd that seems. Do you see that WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM JULY/AUG 2013
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Martin Smith: by Aimee Herd
continued
who we were too. In everything we did, we believed in it and we were ourselves. I think that’s really important.
changing at all, as unknown, unsigned worship artists and bands have access to things like Pro Tools and such on their own computers? MS: I think you’re right, since I wrote that I think things have changed a little bit. People don’t want polished, superprofessional [sounding recordings] anymore—it’s got to be authentic. People just want to know that it’s real, and I think what’s great about that is that it’s a real open playing field now... anyone with talent can progress, and have a voice regardless of what they look like. I think it’s really amazing. AH: Looking back, it seems like maybe you and the guys accomplished things in a similar way with Deliriou5? by not signing with any label so that you were in control of the way your own music sounded. MS: That’s true. I think as well, we lived in England, so our world was very different from a lot of the bands that live in Nashville. We wanted to make the music here and be in control of that. We’d let the music go and sometimes the records would do well and sometimes they wouldn’t. But all along, the main thing was that we were always doing what we felt at the time was right. So there’s an authenticity through it all—not that every record was brilliant—but you can hear a band going on a journey. And that’s very important, really. AH: And to be able to look back and say, “Yeah, we were true to who we were throughout the whole process; that’s a valuable thing. MS: Right; one week we’d be leading worship with Joyce Meyer and that was who we were, and another we’d be on the road with Bryan Adams and that was
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AH: It’s the same authentic feel with God’s Great Dance Floor too. I noticed that a lot of the songs were co-writes, and particularly with Chris Tomlin. I know back during Compassionart, Chris wasn’t able to be as much a part of that as originally hoped; is that one of the reasons he co-wrote a good portion on this album?
to let your guard down and invite someone into what you’ve created, and vice-versa. But, usually you know who you’re working with and there’s always that little bit of chemistry that you need, and if someone’s got the gift of melody, then there is always that common denominator. It’s been amazing to write with so many different people over the last couple of years, it’s been fantastic. AH: The music video for “Back to the Start” features your daughter Elle—who is beautiful by the way—as a dancer... that must have been very special for both of you.
MS: It has been special. We started filming it in Bogota, Colombia, I’ve got some great friends down [there] at a church. We shot the whole thing there, then we brought it back to the UK and shot Elle doing her dance—that MS: Ah well, Chris was involved a was great, seeing her do that. And then little with Compassionart but you’re getting the edit, that was fantastic. It right, not as fully as the others who was all woven together; the story of were involved, that was a shame. But, learning the dance, then multiplying it I think this has just come out of the with a lot of people. I love it, it was friendship. Once-a-year we try to get amazing that we managed to capture together and songs usually come out of that; it was a God thing really. You that. I think we’ve both been amazed couldn’t orchestrate that! (Laughs) at how these songs have come out of AH: Martin, you’ve got a couple songs our times together, and it’s incredible to on the record, “Fire Never Sleeps” and think [the songs] are traveling around “Waiting Here for You,” which were the world again. both also recorded on the Jesus Culture AH: Well, I like the combination, you with Martin Smith Live From New York album you did recently. How did you two write well together. come to work with Jesus Culture and MS: Yeah, thank you—he’s a clever what was that experience like for you? guy! I’ve learned a lot from him, so it’s MS: That’s been another amazing a good partnership I think. thing. Those guys grew up on Deliriou5? AH: Do you prefer writing with other music so there’s that connection there people now then? anyway. It wasn’t difficult for us to MS: I love writing with people! I think connect, and when we started playing it’s a social thing as well that I like— together it felt easy—like it was the right the chance to hang out with people, thing to do. So we went to New York have lunch together, and then you write and recorded the live album, but I don’t together. It’s an easier process for sure, think any of us realized it would come because two heads are always better out so well. We’ve all been surprised than one. There are some songs I write by it. It was amazing to capture some [on my own] but they’re few and far of those moments of live, spontaneous between now. I kind of like the team stuff. I think that’s what separates it from other live worship records, is the thing. flow and the spontaneity. But I love AH: There is the aspect though, that that, and I love those guys. They were you’re somewhat vulnerable—you’re very kind to invite me into their world, putting your heart out there, sometimes it was great. with someone you maybe don’t know AH: That live album really reminds as well... me of Deliriou5?’ Live and in the Can MS: You’re right, it’s a little bit like a recording. But getting back to God’s marriage in a way; you’ve got to serve Great Dance Floor, if I had to pick a the process. You’ve got to be willing favorite song from it, I think it would
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Martin Smith: by Aimee Herd
continued
about the car crash I had in 1995... wanting heartfelt experiences, aren’t about mid-life struggles and then Psalm they? 56, where it says God catches our tears AH: Yes. So, what are the future in a bottle. projects you’ve got in the works? AH: The ocean waves recorded on MS: In September, God’s Great Dance MS: Well, I think “Back to the Start” is an important song because it tells the story “You Carry Me” are a really nice touch, Floor, Step Two is coming out, with of the prodigal son. Really I think that’s are they from near you? another 11 brand new songs. That will where... the whole theme of God’s Great MS: Yeah it is, it’s from where we live hopefully be out by September 30th. I Dance Floor is all about Luke chapter 15 here in Brighton. just finished it today. I’m really excited story; the kid goes off and blows it, and about it. then he comes home. It’s such a powerful AH: One of the things you mentioned earlier, and that you also pointed out AH: Can you take a minute and talk image for people today. So, there’s that in your book is the importance of about your gear? I know in the video sense of people coming home. But in that, church, particularly local church ties. you’re playing a Fender Rhodes... church has to be a fantastic place to come home to. It needs to be a place where Throughout the time that Deliriou5? MS: My favorite keyboard is the anybody can be. So, I think the record was a band; all of you and your KORG SV-1 that I use live. It’s easy is about all that—“I’m coming back to the families have always maintained very for me because it’s not got many knobs start...” and then it turns into celebration, strong connections to your local church. or menus. (Laughs) It’s a really ‘go-to’ Would you say it’s a vitally important keyboard. I’ve got a 1952 Martin 00which is the dance floor thing. element for a worship band to have 19, with a K & K pickup in it, that’s I think you can hear a lot of “me” in the and strive to keep? what I use live. I absolutely love that record in terms of that period of transition MS: Absolutely, you can’t separate the guitar. My back-up is a Collings (which and me asking God to carry us to the other side... “You Carry Me.” There’s a lot of two. You have to be part of a local also has a K & K in it). Those are my secret little prayers in there. I think “Catch community of Believers, because that’s live things, and I’ve got countless things Every Teardrop” is my favorite though, where we’re supposed to be—we’re in the studio. Then for effects, I’m just supposed to live in community. I think using a little reverb and delay. that’s where we’re strongest. It’s what AH: So, you’re in this new time in your God designed, and that is where the life; you’re still singing of and for the engine of worship really happens, Lord, but things may look and sound a when people gather together and little different... what are some of the agree that God’s amazing. things God has put in your heart for this be “Back to the Start.” Musically, I love the Rhodes on there and how it builds into a celebration, plus the lyrics really speak to me.
I think that if you’re in that environment then you’re going to be filled with creativity and God’s going to give you songs, but if you’re not it’s very hard to keep fresh. It’s then a step away from things rather than a stepping in. The local church should be central to our lives, really.
time?
MS: I know, isn’t that fantastic?! And that’s kind of like a ‘sign of the times’ that it’s become accessible to everyone, and people aren’t wanting ultra-professional product, they’re just
To watch Martin’s music video for “Back to the Start,” and more about Martin Smith, visit his website: martinsmith.tv
MS: I think it’s time for the Church to rise up. I see that more and more. Church is the place where what God wants to do is going to happen. I can’t see it happening any other way. So, that’s what we’re giving our lives to. Being involved in the church here in AH: And speaking of that creativity, I Brighton—I travel when I can, but—the seen so much of it coming from people’s heart of it is serving the local people, local fellowships and their worship and seeing God’s glory come here. teams—great worship, often unique, I think if everyone focused on that coming from otherwise unknown and it would have a huge ripple effect, unsigned artists and bands. And it’s wouldn’t it? available to anyone now.
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SONGCHART
WAITING HERE FOR YOU
Martin Smith, Chris Tomlin & Jesse Reeves _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
+ `~`~ +~```~ +~~~ + ``~ ++~` ` `` _` ` _ `_` _ _ C
Am
G
Dm
F
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
VERSE 1: C If faith can move the mountains Am G Let the mountains move C We come with expectation Am G F We're waiting here for You C Am G Waiting here for You VERSE 2:
C You’re the Lord of all creation Am G And still You know my heart C The Author of salvation Am G You’ve loved me from the start
F
CHORUS:
C Waiting here for You Dm With our hands Am G F Lifted high in praise C And it’s You Dm We adore Am G Am G Singing a - lle - lu -
C ia F
Am G
C
Am G
Am G
F
Am G (2nd time link to Bridge)
VERSE 3: You are everything You promised You’re faithfulness is true And we’re desperate for Your presence All we need is You BRIDGE: F Am G Allelu - ia F Am G Allelu - ia Copyright © 2012M Gloworks © 2011 Thankyou usic (PRS) Ltd, / wSixSteps/EMI orshiptogether.com Songs (ASCAP) / sixsteps Music (ASCAP) / Vamos Publishing (ASCAP) / Gloworks (PRS) All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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RECORD REVIEWS
Hillsong Live Glorious Ruins 1. Always Will (Intro) 2. Always Will 3. “You Never Fail” 4. “Christ is Enough” 5. “Where the Spirit of the Lord Is” 6. “Glorious Ruins” 7. “Closer” 8. “God Who Saves” 9. “To be Like You” 10. “Man of Sorrows” 11. “We Glorify Your Name” 12. “You Crown the Year (Psalm 65:11)” 13. “Anchor” 14. “Lift You Higher” 15. “Only You” “Glorious Ruins” is, in and of itself, an oxymoron. The secular world would think it ludicrous to say that there is something glorious about being in ruins. But we, as children of God, know that Christ died for us while we were ruined by the stain of sin and thus created the most glorious thing ever: restoration of the relationship between God and man. This is the theme of Hillsong Live’s 22nd live release, Glorious Ruins. Glorious Ruins is an acknowledgment of humanity and a bridge to redemption. It includes 12 fresh new songs (14 songs on the Deluxe Edition) written by Hillsong team members including Joel Houston, Reuben Morgan, Ben Fielding, and Matt Crocker. Like most of Hillsong’s previous albums, Glorious Ruins holds true to what has made Hillsong a trendsetter in modern worship: powerful anthems of praise steeped in Biblical truths that are relevant to every age. Some of the most noticeable tracks in
By Gerod Bass
this latest collection include the hookladen opening track “Always”, which features an infectious melody and speaks of God’s faithfulness, “You Crowned the Year”, which is a celebration of God’s goodness to all who draw near to Him based on Psalm 65:11 and is sung by Hillsong Pastor Brian Houston’s daughter, Laura Toganival. “Glorious Ruins,” the title cut, is a song led and co-written by Joel Houston. It beautifully expresses the very heart of this record when Houston sings, “Let the ruins come to life / In the beauty of Your Name / Rising up from the ashes / God forever You reign.” “Glorify Your Name” is an acoustic, very simple yet passionate offering of worship that fits nicely within this project. The only thing that kind of bugged this reviewer while listening was the lack of truly powerful female vocals that usually accompany Hillsong releases. Noticeably absent are Darlene Zschech (who, of course, is no longer the head worship pastor at Hillsong), and Brooke Ligertwood (Fraser). Although there are two new female soloists, they are not what I was hoping for as far as style and vocal ability are concerned. That being said, this is another solid offering from Hillsong that is full of songs about the redemptive power of Christ that overcame the ruins of death and sin in our lives. BJ Putnam More and More 1. Dance 2. Sing a New Song 3. Glorious 4. Beautiful 5 Beautiful Love (feat. Henry Seeley) 6. Ask (feat. Jonathan Stockstill) 7. Here For You
*Gerod’s Personal Picks in bold.
Overall impression Average church congregation could learn/participate on the first hear Can be learned/adapted by a band of average skill Lyrical creativity and integrity
Hillsong Live (Glorious Ruins) BJ Putnam More and More Aaron Shust Morning Rises David Crowder Band All This For a King highest marks
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8. More and More 9. Tell the World 10. New 11. Dance Reprise 12. Dance (Kingston Remix) 13. Beautiful Love (Radio Edit) BJ Putnam, the lead worship pastor at the multi-campus Church for the Nations in Phoenix, Az. has teamed with Grammy award winning singer/songwriter Israel Houghton for Putnam’s latest solo worship release, More and More. This 11 song, live worship album boasts a fine mix of soul and rock to create a truly diverse album that will reach a wide variety of audiences. The album includes many standout songs such as the album opener “Dance”, an upbeat, fun worship anthem with a potent lyric and a commanding groove, “Beautiful Love”, which is about how Jesus carried the cross and carries us, and “Here For You”, which showcases Putnam’s passionate, soulful voice while lyrically painting a gorgeous picture of what surrender should look like for every worshiper. While most of the album boasts a gospel vibe (No doubt inspired by Houghton) there are some really nice ballads as well, including the lead single “Beautiful Love” which was co-written by Jennie Lee Riddle. This quiet prayer of a song has one of the most arresting opening lines I have ever heard: “My past was silenced at your command / When my broken heart was healed in the palm of your hand.” This is a love song to Jesus with a difference. Instead of just painting a rosy picture, Putnam admits that our love is often flawed by sin. Yet the very fact that Christ accepts love despite our sinfulness is not only great writing, it is great theology. Overall this is a nice offering from BJ Putnam that threads gospel and rock in both a familiar and unique way that extends the sonic palette and allows the listener to rejoice and participate. I really appreciated that Putnam worked hard to produce a worship album that will appeal to a wide audience of God’s people, even if there was no real new ground broken here as far as originality is concerned.
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RECORD REVIEWS Aaron Shust Morning Rises 1. Morning Rises (Intro) 2. God of Brilliant Lights 3. Cornerstone 4. Rushing Waters 5. God Is For Us 6. Great Is The Chorus 7. No One Higher 8. Deliver Me 9. The One 10. Mighty Fortress 11. Satisfy 12. Firm Foundation It’s no secret that life can bring its share of challenges and trials, and sometimes these are the events that shape who we are as people of God. Do we give thanks to God for those tough times, allowing ourselves to grow in our faith? Or do we turn from Him and allow the situation to overtake us? Worship Leader and songwriter Aaron Shust and wife, Sarah, have experienced some tough trials of their own recently with the medical tribulations of their son Nicky last year and their youngest, Michael, who was born in February with Down syndrome and needed immediate heart surgery. Morning Rises, which is Shust’s 5th release, is a collection of 11 songs birthed out of these experiences about how God remains faithful to His people in the midst of sorrow and uncertainty. Songs such as “Cornerstone,” “Firm Foundation”, and “God is For Us”, all point the listener to a God who never changes and is present in every circumstance. “Mighty Fortress” is a Shust co-write with Paul Baloche that anchors faith in God’s loving character, and “Deliver Me” is an intimate acoustic prayer of longing for God’s power of deliverance.
special. I would have liked to hear him take a few more risks musically, which would have made this album one of my over-the-top favorites of 2013. Still, Morning Rises is a worthwhile project and should be added to any worship leaders congregational repertoire. David Crowder Band All This For A King The Essential Collection
The powerful guitar hooks in “Everything Glorious” and the hopeful declarations of “O Praise 1. O Praise Him Him” are just as encouraging and 2. Our Love is Loud uplifting now as it was when the 3. Open Skies songs were first recorded. The 4. Here is Our King nostalgia of “Our Love is Loud”, 5. Wholly Yours alongside the lesser known song also on 6. How He Loves (Radio Version) the 2002 album “You Alone”, give us 7. You Alone great moments of reminiscence. Their most 8. Everything Glorious famous cover, “How He Loves” (originally 9. The Glory of it All written by indie artist John Mark McMillan) 10. SMS {Shine} (Radio Version) is a standout, and the radio version of 11. Shadows (FF5 Phenomenon Remix) 12. After All (Holy) (Capital Kings ‘SMS (Shine)’ with an explosive electric guitar introduction only previously heard Remix) 13. No One Like You (The Digital Age on WOW Hits 2012 is now released to David Crowder enthusiasts while it again Remix) reminds us that God shines His light into 14. This I Know (New Track) the darkest places of our lives. When it comes to being a trailblazer in The little surprise spoken of earlier comes the world of modern worship music, no other band has been able to accomplish at the end of the album as we get to hear what DCB (David Crowder Band) has a new Crowder song, “This I Know” done in their 15 years together. There which is a fun southern bluegrass ditty was always the anticipation of what with a bit of a Celtic feel speaking of the new and interesting things they may do promises of God. We even get to hear next, whether it was covering a Sinead the Digital Age remix version of “No One O’Connor song, using a robot drummer, Like You”, which is far more digitized and or taking a 400 year old hymn and giving electronic than the original. If you are it new life, DCB gave new meaning to a dance/house techno fan, this track is the words “cutting edge worship”. Sadly, for you. they have parted ways as a band with All This For a King is a must-buy for any David pursuing his solo career and most DCB fan whether you are completing your of the rest of the band forming a new Crowder collection or purchasing your group called The Digital Age. We have first Crowder album. I think this album is come to the end of an era, but before a shining example of how a band who is DCB rides off into the proverbial sunset, called to other things should go out, by they have given us one lasting memory giving their fans a collection of powerful with their final release, All This For A King. musical memories while pointing them to Essentially, this is a greatest hits album new things about to come. Thank you that highlights some of the best-loved DCB for 15 years of inspiring worship songs from DCB with a few surprises that and pointing people to Christ through we have come to expect from them over your music.
My favorite song on the album and one that is sure to find a place at the top of the CCM charts is “God of Brilliant Lights.” The powerful guitar riffs, the crescendo building drive, the anthemic explosion of the chorus and hook-laden vocals make the years. Almost every song contained here remains in its original packaging, as this track an instant worship classic. it was when it was released. Normally, There are some great songs for personal I would complain about such things, but and congregational worship contained since this is their last release it makes in this latest collection from Aaron Shust. perfect sense, allowing the listener a Almost every song is easily sung, instantly musical stroll down the DCB memory memorable, and could be played by lane. your worship team on Sunday morning. Despite the ever-evolving style and Although I really enjoyed how much Shust poured his heart into the lyrical quality innovative musical choices of DCB over of this album, the instrumentation and the years, the one thing that has remained arrangements throughout were nothing constant is their dedication to solid
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theology and Christ-centered music. This combination of creativity built upon the foundation in Biblical truth is why songs like “O Praise Him (All This for a King),” “Here is Our King,” “The Glory of It All” and “How He Loves” have stood the test of time and have been circulating around churches as worship staples for years.
Gerod Bass is a ministry veteran who has been serving God’s people through worship and youth ministry for more than 20 years. Since 2009, he has been living his dream serving as the minister of worship and Jr. High at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Tacoma, Wa. Gerod is a singer, guitarist and recording artist who has a passion for impacting lives for the sake of the Gospel. You can find out more about Gerod, his ministry and his music, including his newest album release at his website, gerodbass.com.
Need Help? Call (855) 362-8790
www.focus-worship.com
FOH ENGINEER By Bill Gibson
Cable Considerations The following is excerpted from my book, The Ultimate Church Sound Operator’s Handbook: Second Edition. Cable is an important part of successful sound operating. It’s important to use the proper wire gauge for each task and it’s very important to use cables that are well-made and very reliable. In the first edition of this book I placed high importance on the cable manufacturer and some of their technologies. In the second edition, we look closer at the nuts and bolts of cable. Cable Construction Standards Cables from a respected manufacturer can be trusted to be reliable. Plus, we can expect these cables to deliver a reasonably accurate rendition of the signal they receive. In reality, there are very few actual cable manufacturers. Many of the cables we use are imported and the name of the apparent manufacturer is printed on the cable. In addition to making sure the actual wire is high quality, it is equally important to pay close attention to the connectors used and the quality of construction. Neutrik and Switchcraft connectors have been trustworthy for years. If you’re building your own cables, be meticulous. There are standards for cable construction which, when adhered to, produce cables that can be trusted to work for a long time. At a local AES meeting here in Seattle, Steve Turnidge (circuit designer, mastering engineer, and author), along with Aaron Gates (system designer and installer), presented the standards to which they adhere when they build cables. Steve designs circuits for Krell, Rane, and his own company, Synthwerks. Aaron has managed and implemented many full-scale installations, including Microsoft Game Studios, MSNBC Studios, and the Experience Music Project. Their reference is the NASA wiring standard. It’s easy to see that when these standards are met, there is an extremely high chance that there will be no cable failure in the system. Although wires break, connectors are bent, and unexplained things happen, if we build our cables according to a rigorous standard, such as that specified by NASA, we are giving our systems and our music the best chance to be heard and understood. Visit the following websites to get a glimpse into what it takes for a cable termination to endure space travel, which is admittedly nothing compared to the same cable enduring a rock guitarist! http://www.hq.nasa.gov/ office/codeq/doctree/87394.pdf
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Varying Levels of Soldering Technique: These two 1/4-inch connectors offer dramatically different reliability—this picture is worth 1000 words. Take great care and pride in the neatness and accuracy of your soldering tasks—spend the time it takes to get it right. You’ll be much happier and you’ll save a lot of heartache at the gig!
Speaker Cables Use the appropriate wire to connect your speakers to your power amp. Speaker wire is not the same as a guitar cable. Use designated speaker wire. Speaker cable must contain two identical insulated wires and doesn’t require a braided shield. The two wires in the speaker cable are typically composed of many strands of thin copper wire. Also, choosing wire that is the wrong thickness for your situation can cause a problem with the efficiency of your amp and speakers. Sometimes, it is difficult to tell a speaker cable from an instrument cable because they both are commonly constructed with visually-similar wire and 1/4-inch tipsleeve phone plugs on each end. Although speaker connections can be made with wire that looks like heavy-duty lamp wire, most professional speaker cable is round and black, like an instrument cable. These cables are not interchangeable. When a speaker cable is used as an instrument cable, the lack of a shield results in increased level of electrostatic noise and RF interference. When an instrument cable is used as a speaker cable, there is an impedance problem because the hot lead and shield are not the identical impedance, like the pair of identical wires required by a speaker connection. The impedance variance will cause a decrease in the efficiency of the speaker-to-amplifier connection. If there is a question about the intended application for a particular cable, open up the connector and inspect the wire. If there is an insulated wire and a braided shield, it’s an instrument cable. If there are two identical insulated wires, it’s a speaker cable. Speaker Wire Connections Always use heavy-duty wire designed specifically for use with speakers. Wire
is sized according the American Wire Gauge (AWG) standard. The smaller the wire number, the thicker the wire. Thicker wire has less resistance to signal. To have minimal degradation of signal in longer runs, we use thicker wire. Be absolutely certain that the red post on the back of the power amp is connected to the red post on the back of the speaker and that black goes to black! If these are connected backwards on one of the speakers, the speakers are said to be out of phase. When this happens, a sound wave that is sent simultaneously to both speakers moves one speaker cone out while it moves the other speaker cone in. Speakers connected out of phase work against each other instead of with each other. What you hear from them is inaccurate and unpredictable, especially in the lower frequencies. Wire Gauge Speaker wire is categorized according to a few different wire gauge standards, the most common of which was established by Brown & Sharp, a division of Hexagon Meteorology, Inc. Brown & Sharp established the American Wire Gauge (AWG) specification, which divides wire into AWG gauges from 0000 (pronounced “4 aught”) gauge, with a diameter of .46 inches, to 36 gauge, with a diameter of 0.0050 inches. The actual gauge spec is based on a mathematical equation and it’s not uncommon to see gauge tables from 00000000 (8/0) to 50 gauge—neither extreme applies to our duties as sound operators. Wire exhibits impedance characteristics — different sizes of wire resist the flow of electrical current by different amounts. Larger wire exhibits less resistance (lower impedance) and smaller wire exhibits greater resistance (higher impedance). It’s important to note that inappropriately small wire used for excessively long runs could add substantially to the combined speaker/cable impedance load. Using the appropriate cable length and gauge should result in a small impact on the overall impedance of the connection between devices. The actual impact of the cable on a system depends a variety of factors, including the cable length and thickness, the amount of power being provided, and the total impedance of the speaker cabinet. With all of these things considered, most speaker cable runs in a live sound setting require between 16and 10-gauge wire. Some engineers prefer smaller than typical gauge cable (larger than typical diameter wire) in an effort to minimize the impact on overall impedance. In addition, thicker cable is often associated with better transfer of low frequencies. If you’re building a large Continued on page 48
Digital Heart. Analog Soul. Direct Recording
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Choose a standard full range or a multi-band compressor to control peak sound levels.
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Yamaha MGP Mixing consoles take an innovative approach to utilizing digital technology in an analog mixer. Adding high-resolution effects, iPhone/iPod integration and the functionality of the Stereo Hybrid channel to the warmth and musicality of premium analog sound represents the ultimate balance of heart and soul. Get the full story by scanning the QR code and visit your Yamaha Live Sound dealer to experience this for yourself. Your music deserves it.
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MINISTRY + ARTISTRY = PROFITABILITY? CREATING YOUR MAP™ By Scott A. Shuford
Crafting the Right Marketing Mix on a Budget Marketing budgets are smaller than ever these days, and shrinking budgets allocated to marketing for any band or artist, or really any particular Christian product or service, continues to be one of the biggest hurdles marketers face. The best thing you can do is plan your marketing mix well in advance of album launch and develop relationships with core advertising partners so you have trustworthy reps who can help you increase the value of what your budgets can achieve. Here are a few helpful hints when finalizing your marketing plan to ensure your budget gets stretched to the max: · Match Your Product to the Right Audience. This is perhaps the single most important tip in this entire article. If your Christian album, book, film, or other product or service doesn’t match the audience, you will not see good results. This may seem like common sense, yet so many marketers shoot themselves in the foot before they even begin their campaigns by incorrectly matching products with target audiences. The very first thing our Engagement Specialists do when planning a marketing campaign with one of our FrontGate clients is to research the audiences who would most likely purchase that product or service. Saying you want to reach Christian music fans is not enough. Finding the groups that best reflect the ideas, opinions, and benefits showcased in your album, product, or service is critical. Be sure to match the needs of a specific audience to the features of the product or service you are providing.
mean you have to rob Peter to pay Paul. Commit to staying firmly within the confines of your budget. That’s where your relationships with advertisers, like FrontGate, come in. Ask your advertiser for help. Ask them what they can do even on a limited budget, and be sure to always ask about value-adds. Don’t spend more budget just to meet some minimum buy amount. Instead, find the outlets that best match your target audience and which will provide the best value. Minimum buys tend to only benefit the outlet. Most advertisers, especially ones that you work with on a regular basis, will be willing to throw in some text links, social media, or additional impressions to help you garner the best results possible. Many media outlets will be willing to partner with you if you’re upfront about your limited budget. If you are realistic on the front-end about what you can and cannot spend, you’ll save time and effort in the long-run by setting up and executing the right budget from the start.
similar campaigns, and what they would recommend. Remember, they know their media outlets better than anyone, and you know your product or service better than anyone. Combine your expertise together to create a campaign that’s creative, savvy, and cost effective. · Look for Remnants. If you can afford the time to facilitate last-minute buys, remnants can be a great way to make your budget stretch. Normally, the last week of the month is the best time to hit up your advertising partners for any remnants that might still be available. The last-minute nature of remnants also means you, as the marketer, have to be ready to quickly and effectively execute your campaign. That means you need to have someone ready to sign the insertion order paperwork, and that you need to immediately have your website live with your creative completed and ready for delivery. Keep in mind that these lastminute buys also mean inventory is slim. When playing the remnant game, you don’t always have first pick at timing, placement, and impressions. However, remnants can prove extremely effective for leftover budget dollars or if you are wanting to try a new and unique audience. You might just be surprised at how far a small budget spend on a remnant can take you.
· Hand-pick Options. When dealing with a limited budget, sometimes the best thing you can do is choose one or two specific things that will make a quality impact over the few expensive things that reach a larger audience. When money is tight, it’s best to narrow your focus. FrontGate is adept at providing a broad overview of everything our audiences offer while giving marketers the opportunity to pick and choose the items that best suit their product needs and their · Stay Within Budget. Just because budget. Ask your Engagement Specialist you don’t have a lot to work with doesn’t what’s proven effective in the past, what the average results have been for Scott just returned from GMA’s
FrontGate Media’s Offer of the Month
Go to the blog now
www.FrontGateMedia.com/blog Also follow Scott at… Twitter: @ScottShuford Facebook.com/FrontGateMedia
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Exclusively for Christian marketers seeking to promote projects to the Christian audience. If you want to be the first to know about promotional and advertising deals as well as the latest options to reach Christians, tune in the Offer of Month in the FrontGateMedia.com blog. Our blog is the only place to get this information!
JULY/AUG 2013 WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM
Immerse Conference where he served on two panels and hosted a “lunch with a pro”. See him as part of the Creator Leadership Network teaching team at this year’s Christian Musician Summits. He has led classes for us at NAMM as well as teaching on marketing to the Christian Leadership Alliance. Featured in Adweek, Scott is the Chief Engagement Officer at FrontGate, the #1 culture-engaged media group reaching the Christian audience (www.FrontGateMedia. com) and the largest in reach to Christian Music fans and to Church musicians.
www.ChristianMusicianSummit.com
Practical training for the entire band & tech crew, leaders, songwriters, indie artists...
OCTOBER 4-5, 2013
Belmont Church (on Music Row), Nashville, TN
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION IS OPEN
One Sonic Society - (Jason Ingram, Stu G, Paul Mabury) Brenton Brown & band (Ben Showalter, Scotty Murray, Daniel Ornellas), Matt Maher, Phillilp LaRue, Don Poythress, Ian Eskelin, Amanda Noelle, Zoro the Drummer, Dave Cleveland, Chance Scoggins, Tom Lane, Jason Webb... and many more...
NOVEMBER 7*- 8 - 9, 2013
Overlake Christian Church, Redmond, WA
*One-Day Intensives occur on Thursday, Nov 7... They require separate registration
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION IS OPEN
Matt Maher, Paul Baloche, One Sonic Society (Jason Ingram, Stu G, Paul Mabury), Tim Timmons Blues Counsel, Dave Cleveland & Band, Amanda Noelle, Ian Eskelin, Don Poythress, Bryan Duncan, Doug Doppler, Norm Stockton, Zoro, Tom Kraeuter, Mike Howerton ... and more
improving skill
::
inspiring talent
THE WORSHIP COMMUNITY
By Doug Doppler
Friendship, Not Just Fellowship So let’s have a little heart to heart about a matter that some of my friends and I have been coming to terms with. Like all perceived challenges, there are guaranteed to be solutions, but before they can be put into place it helps to identify the root cause that’s creating the problem. We lead busy lives that seem to get busier with each passing year. An unfortunate byproduct of this is that many of us have an increasingly smaller amount of free time to invest into our relationships. While this an easy enough rut to get into, the consequences are anything but trivial. As members of worship teams we are called together to serve God through the gift of music. With all the energy we put into our private lives, combined with time preparing for worship, how much time are we really investing into one another? Do we really know what the other members of our team are going through? For some teams, that answer is a resounding yes. The question I have is: what happens when someone leaves the team? Does that relationship have less value than before? If that answer even begins to look like a ‘yes’, I think we might have begun to identify an underlying cause of what I’m getting at. Paul spoke over and over about love. To me, the love he spoke of was often referring to people near and far. It was never dependent on who was at his side at a given moment, nor was it ever taken lightly. Paul valued people and he valued the relationships that flourished in the love he demonstrated. The question I’ll pose is this: Do you love others as Paul did? And if not, why not? Or better yet, how did we get to a place where some of our key relationships are more steeped in fellowship than friendship? Do you
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agree? Do you disagree? What do your Not everybody is going to want to friends have to say? see the same movie, but dinner and a I can tell you what an increasing movie offer breaking bread time as well number of my friends have said to me as some unwinding time in front of the in confidence lately. They feel valued for silver screen. When we see one another their gifts more than who they are, and I in just one mode of our lives, we really can say that I too have experienced that don’t know one another outside of that dimension. When we get a chance to do feeling at times myself. life together outside of Church, it really So if, for a moment, we choose to agree doesn’t matter who has the best voice or that we place greater value on people biggest pedal board. Do you see where with greater gifting, I think we can most I’m going with all this? likely agree we might have strayed a Another place a team might consider bit. So what then might we do? Paul coming together is unpacking the translated Jesus’ message of love into valuing each part of the body, noting that message during a second service. This each part is invaluable to the whole. To offers an amazing opportunity to see me, the what is learning to make sure that where the Pastor’s message really hit people truly feel that are valued. The how home for people. In the immediacy of these moments you begin to find out what is the key… people are going through as they tend to I recently attended a weekend men’s still have their guard down. It’s important retreat for my church. By design, my Pastor to remember the Church life is the best made sure we spent more time doing guy life some people have, and it’s what they things than Church things. Some played have to look forward to each week. Are golf, others mountain biked, while others we creating the opportunities to develop got a chance to explore Lake Tahoe. friendships, or are we simply creating The most amazing part was not the trip extended moments of fellowship? I have itself, but rather the way we greeted one sometimes been guilty of the latter, but I’m another when we next saw one another. working on actively addressing this in my When we do Church stuff, we tend come relationships. Sometimes it can be work together in fellowship. When we do guy to invest in people’s lives and to actually stuff, it’s much easier to come together in be present and engaged with them. That friendship. And this is where I’m going said, there are few greater rewards than with all of this. There are backdrops for seeing people feel that they are valued building different types of relationships, for who they are, not what they bring. and if we are not consciously framing So my question to you is this: What our team experiences with friendship might you do to foster deeper connection opportunities we might miss out on some between you and the other members of amazing moments that just can’t happen your team? If you’re waiting for them to during a Thursday night rehearsal or take the first move, remember that Christ a Sunday service. Does is take time? chased relentlessly after you. Don’t others Absolutely! Is it worth it? Without a doubt! So let’s take a look at some no brainer deserve the same? ideas on fun stuff that can help get a team Doug Doppler is a together by getting a team together! passionate presenter at worship conferences and also loves to coach worship musicians and teams, especially in the area of the multi-site Church. He is also the author of the soonto-be released title “The Worship Guitar Book”, which will be published by Hal Leonard.
TM
GUITAR GRAB BAG
By Doug Doppler
Ringing True One of my favorite things about Church is the fact that it allows so many people to share the gift of music that has been birthed within. That said, I’ve run into a few too many Worship guitar players who struggle with feeling they are somehow stuck in a rut and can’t see past the trees. So let’s whip out the chain saw and chop some wood!!!
Learning New Chords
The guitar has a tremendous range, which is one of the main reasons I don’t spend a lot of time using a capo. I’ll be the first to say there are some gorgeous sounds up and down the neck that can only be created by using a capo. However, there are far more sounds that can be created by NOT constricting Whether you choose to work on one at the harmonic range of the instrument. a time or several simultaneously, setting Learning new chord shapes inspires me some short, medium, and long term to find different approaches for playing goals is a great way to grow beyond the song, thus allowing me to capture new Sunday-to-Sunday continuum. So let’s take textures and sounds, regardless of the a look at some areas that always move key. I, for one, am the most inspired when me closer to feeling more prepared and I find something that is totally new for me inspired on the instrument. to play and can then begin the journey of making it my own. I can’t say enough Living with the Songs about the benefits of learning lots of I encounter an ever-increasing number chords. It’s kind of like having all the right of people who are finding it hard to tools in the shed—you’re always ready to strike a healthy balance between work, pull the exact one you need to get the job family, and finding quality practice done right. time—myself included. This is one of Teach Some Lessons the reasons I repeatedly emphasize the value of living with songs. Whether it’s I never cease being amazed at how on your way to work, on the treadmill, or much I learn through teaching others. in the background when you get home, If there are players on your team who the more you let those songs into your might benefit from a few hours of your subconscious, the more you begin to feel time, it’s a worthy investment that has the the motion of the parts as they ebb and added benefit of providing internal clarity flow throughout an arrangement. If you about what and why you do what you think about your favorite songs, it’s easy do. More than semantics, once I can to recall the order and duration of the articulate why I do something, I really sections because you’ve heard them so begin to realize how purposeful the things many times. Living with songs is a great I don’t consciously think about actually way to move toward this same sense of are. The more I can teach other players knowing, and is quite attainable without about playing with dynamics, the more it a guitar in your hands. It’s always amazes causes me to focus on them in my own me how much more prepared I feel when playing. I live with the songs. This directly translates Recording to feeling more confident as I shift from As I was picking up some gear at a local section to section within arrangements, even on weeks where practice time is recording studio I was reminded of my first recording experience on a Fostex 4-track limited. cassette recorder. I remember excitedly
hitting the record button for the first time, just to taste bitter and total defeat upon playing the track back. The good news is that we guitar players aren’t much for giving up, and through that experience I learned that my time really needed some fine-tuning. As I worked with the metronome, my skill grew to the point where the recording process became a thing of joy and inspiration. Because recording takes a brutally honest snapshot of our playing, it bursts the bubble in which we might otherwise believe things about our playing that just aren’t true—yet. I’ll admit that as much as I love the things I do well, I still notice every note or chord I play that is slightly out of time or just out of tune. While obsessing to the point of losing all the joy is never a good thing, recording allows me to clearly hear my inadequacies without an instrument in my hands. In this fashion, the next time I pick up the instrument I’ve learned something that I otherwise might not have. In closing I’d like to add that the phrase, “no pain, no gain” seems to be highly applicable to “getting there” with the guitar. Out of the ashes of my most frustrating experiences something new was birthed in my spirit. My Pastor recently did a great teaching on not letting our feelings get in the way of what needs to be done. While we might not feel like going to work on a Monday, it just needs to get done. The same thing applies to growing on the instrument. Practicing new ideas might not always feel good, but in the long run it benefits you, your congregation, and the greatest audience of all—the Lord Himself. God Bless ~ DougJ
Doug Doppler is passionate about God, worship, and worship musicians. In addition to his work coaching individuals and teams, Doug is also the author of “The Worship Guitar Book” which will be available in May 2013 via Hal Leonard.
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THE BAND
By Tom Lane
Jukebox Worship There are times I feel it would just be easier to push play on a CD in worship. It would at least make it easier to hit the moving target of expectations among pastors, leadership, and the congregation; but in truth we can’t. Nor is worship leading ultimately about pleasing people, but sometimes we still prioritize facilitating others over ministry to the Lord.
songs. We should strive to engage with God and be pliable enough to move with the Spirit of God that is always moving among us. He never parks on one tradition or style, nor should we. The end goal is not simply to sound good, though it helps for sure, but to lift high The Name above all names; then He draws the people.
manna and blessing in worship. If in a situation where we feel like we’re having to perform according to someone’s expectations, whether a pastor, leader, or otherwise; I encourage we begin a healthy dialogue and work to become united in the goal of aiming for God’s heart each week. Work out the balance of using the tools we have well, and That’s the promise and the mystery of actually hitting the mark. People sense the worship. It’s more than copying styles or difference and know when we’re leading playing songs at the right BPM to evoke songs versus leading worship. certain emotional responses. As much as I love good music and musicianship, I would prefer to look the A missing part of many worship times is genuine and authentic reverence and fool and err on the side of humility and awe. Out of fear we sometimes just do surrender, rather than sonic and musical what we know how to do to fill space perfection. It’s a problem when we’re rather than wait. I do realize that most so concerned about the performance often it’s not the worship leader or team of songs that we allow ourselves to be that gets to decide the flow of a service. frustrated and irritated, or worse we vent But worship is none-the-less flexible, living, those frustrations on others. As if our and breathing. What God did yesterday worship didn’t count because we failed may not be what He does today. Every to reach some standard of excellence that time we gather it’s a new and different we aspire to, or someone’s expectations day, unless we are tuned in to His of our worship.
Twenty years ago it was on the hearts of many in the church to improve the level of skill in worship, giving birth to a plethora of equipping conferences and events. Now we are seeing the fruit of them and there are some amazing talents in the church—the quality of our worship has improved no doubt. Ten years ago we were ten years into a transition from Contemporary Christian Music being the genre that represented the Church, to Modern Worship becoming the new standard and tradition. The music became more vertically focused. It was a return to our first love era that was timely and much needed. Some of the young leaders became the shapers of a new worship presence among us we can miss Him. culture in the church at large, creating a I’m hearing more and more that we’re shift in sound and focus. bored with the same ole same ole: same The pattern is that new styles and songs, the same style—new and old, and cultures help us to grow beyond the the same formulas. We’ve become more past to a new thing, then we copy that predictable and not nearly as responsive thing over and over until something new to the Spirit. By that I don’t mean it has comes along again, usually in response to be a two-hour spontaneous worship to The Lord calling His people back to session every time we gather. The point adoration of, and communion with, is, there’s not one way that works every Himself. I appreciate that the apostle time, nor should it be our goal; but rather Paul both encouraged us to be relevant an encounter with God. to the world, and not to stray from the If there’s a model for us in the Word it is foundation of Christ and Him crucified. this: entering His courts with thanksgiving The gospel is the gospel truth! It will never and praise, bringing our psalms, hymns, lose its power and relevance for all of and spiritual songs, and waiting on the humanity. As we worship it is the Holy Lord. There are many more scriptures to Spirit that reaches into human hearts and help point and guide us into spirit and brings about change—not merely our truth worship. music and eloquent teaching! Let’s not become so comfortable with Worship leaders are more than our production, arrangements, songs, jukeboxes that produce and replicate etc., that we leave no room for today’s album versions of the top CCLI worship
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What is ‘Good worship?’ We use this phrase all the time and I know what we mean, but our standards of measure are not the same as The Lord’s. We often judge worship by others responses to what we do, but we barely know our own hearts let alone another’s. We don’t simply push the play button to achieve desired results in worship. The human will is always involved and it’s presumptuous to think we can do the work of The Holy Spirit for Him. A safe and good bet is to approach the throne of grace boldly with open hands, willing to sacrifice our preparations and plans for God’s purposes, which He delights in revealing to us when we draw near.
Nashville, TN is home for Tom Lane though he is involved in ministry and music around the world. As a singer, songwriter and guitar player, Tom has been teamed with many worship leaders and artists. He continues to record his own work, lead worship, and writes regularly for various worship publications worldwide.
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CAMERA
By Craig Kelly
Thinking of Going Professional as a TV Operator? Professional TV production can be great. As a freelancer since I started my career, I have been blessed in the work I have done and the opportunities that have been afforded me. From a shooting a ten person worship service in the jungles of Sri Lanka to directing stadium-size Christian events across the USA with attendances over 15,000 people, I am convinced that God has rewarded me for the work I have done in His name. Many times I agreed to work for discounted, deferred and even free rates. One time, I travelled to five major US cities and shot, lit, ran sound, directed and even operated a teleprompter for an organization that I believed was making a positive difference in the world. (I have to admit that I struggled to keep a great attitude on that one as I was carting all of the gear by myself until I got to each
A sometimes common tool in your selfmarketing is a reel or production reel. There is no rules of what it should look like so I asked a few professionals in the free TV Camera Operator Group in Linkedin; how important is a demo reel for success? Is it just one of many important location and recruited volunteers to help self-marketing tools such as resume’, credit me.) But here’s the thing – I believe that list, business card, T-shirt, etc. - or is it the God sets up opportunities for me and I key element in finding a job? Maybe it’s need to be vigilant in listening and trusting more important of who you know or is His urging, suggestions and flat out telling what you know or experience - what’s the me what he expects me to do. key do you think? That said, I have been given opportunities Here are a few answers I received; in secular media and entertainment as well. I have travelled the world and have worked at some great events, shot in Matthew M. locations that are not often seen by the Key element...experience is worth general public (I walked on and shot on the wing of a 747 once – in a hanger) nothing if you don’t have the reel to show and met some incredibly diverse people for it. I don’t even look at the name on a along the way, and I didn’t see it coming. resume until the reel passes muster. After Of course I didn’t know what God had that, positive attitude, then experience. I planned for me and I always felt He could care less if they have a business wanted me to push forward and accept card, website, t-shirt, etc. challenges and offers that were made available to me, and to remember that Greg N. HE sent me. If you are thinking about making the leap Hi, the reel is an introduction, for me, how from volunteer to a freelance professional you perform during the show is success. operator, one area of pushing forward, if you want to make a living in television broadcasting/video production, is selfpromotion. It’s an odd thing when you are taught to be humble as a Christian but the world tells you to point at yourself as the best choice. There are a ton of resources that will tell you how to market yourself, promote yourself, run with the bulls and bark like a German Shepard in sales. As a freelancer or job hunter you are the sales person and your best product is you, right? The number one suggestion I have, no matter what path you make for your own PR is; Tell the simple truth! Don’t embellish, boast or brag – just lay out who you are, what you have done and do not deny your beliefs and faith. If you shot 437.3 church services as the long lens, tight camera then say so. If you were the cable puller on a big event at your church – say exactly what your role was – including promptness and neatness. Of course the world of commercial TV, entertainment and production is full of wolves, snakes and deep pits so be wary and really vigilant in thinking through every aspect of your journey, but remember to ask God for clarity and
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discernment and you will do fine.
There are no right or wrong way to create a reel – just don’t try to hide your inexperience with effects. Please feel to join the free TV Camera Operator group on Linked in. We have thousands of members from around the world sharing information for the new and volunteer operators. Craig Kelly is a veteran Freelance, TV camera operator/DP for over 25 years. He writes these articles to be included in his blog found at www. craigjkelly.com. Often the subject matter comes from the 3,000 + global membership in the LinkedIn group he started for new camera operators and volunteer operators called TV Camera Operators. Kelly is also the International/North America Representative to the Guild of Television Cameraman as well as advisory board member for 2 colleges and 2 high schools in the greater Seattle area. In addition, he writes for Worship Musician Magazine and conducts workshops for new and volunteer camera operators. Kelly welcomes comments here or via email at zoomit.cam@craigjkelly.com
PLAYING THE MANDOLIN By Martin Stillion
Meet Kenny Hutson I first met Kenny Hutson on tour with the legendary Vigilantes of Love from Athens, Georgia—the band responsible for some of the best mandolin playing I’ve ever heard in a rock’n’roll context. Kenny was the lead guitarist for VOL, but would pull out the mandolin now and then and really put it through its paces. Since those days Kenny has settled down in Nashville with his wife, songwriter Katy Bowser, and kept busy as a studio multi-instrumentalist on guitar, mandolin, and lap / pedal steel. But recently, when David Crowder let his entire band go and rebooted his musical identity, he invited Kenny to be part of his new project.
First, if it’s loud raging electric guitars and they’re asking you to be part of that, then you have to have a pickup on your mando. But second, if they want you to play melodies and cut through, then put a mic in front of it. I don’t care if it’s a 57, or an AKG 451, or a large diaphragm, I got a few minutes to chat with Kenny or whatever. If that means you don’t hear not long ago, and he gave some answers it in the monitor, and you just listen to the I expected, as well as a few others that I house, do that. Play into a mic, get as far didn’t. Here’s what he had to say. away from the drums and amps as you Tell me about your instrument. can, and learn to play without a monitor. I have a Kentucky KM 650. It’s a mandolin If you’re just going to strum along, then my father bought me for my 10th birthday, a pickup is OK. If you want it to sound 27 years ago. I unwrapped it at the dinner good, you need a mic. table. It’s one of the older Japanese models. I have several mandolins, but I It has a carved top; oddly enough I think it think the best-sounding one for has laminated sides and back, but it sounds amplified playing is the one that good. Most instruments don’t sound that has an onboard mic as well as good unless they’re all solid. It’s one of the a pickup. strange early Kentucky models that shouldn’t If you can mic it, mic it. The pickups sound as good as it does. It misses a little will cover the low end; the mic can help low end, but it doesn’t have the shrieky top cover more of the upper feathery stuff that end that a lot of cheaper models have. mandolins do. It has a Fishman pickup. I bought it when You honestly just have to assess your role I got the gig playing for Vigilantes of Love. as a mandolin player. One of my favorite Recently I’ve been using a Baggs Para EQ mandolinists in Nashville is a guy named for it, but even when I didn’t, it was hardly Lex Price. Every time he showed up for a ever a problem. gig he had to have a Beta 57. He also How often do you play with had a Schertler pickup, which is a highCrowder? end piece of gear and one of the best He called me to be a banjo player, and you can get, but he still needed that mic.
auxiliary instrument, not really integral to the sound. How does a mandolinist cope with that? If you want it to be awesome, then everyone’s going to have to play at a lower level. That doesn’t exclude electric guitars or drums, but if mandolin is important enough to what you’re doing, then you’re going to have to create a space for it. If you want the true beautiful acoustic sound of that instrument to shine through, your mix needs to account for it. But if everyone’s going to play loud, you may just need to strum along through a pickup. I think that mandolin players need to invest a little more time and energy into understanding how the sound boards work and how sound systems work in general, so that they will understand what they can expect and not get frustrated. That’s fantastic advice. I spent a few years running the board at my church when I wasn’t playing in the band, and now that you mention it, I think awareness of how the PA works is valuable for anyone who’s going to get up there and play or sing.
We’re coping with the age-old dilemma of output from a little acoustic instrument trying to match everything on stage. You’re a part-time mandolinist. We’re invited into this thing, and we just Is there room in an electric band bring whatever we have. context for mandolin on every song? Multi-instrumentalist Martin
I confessed to him I wasn’t really a banjo player, but he hired me anyway. I ended up playing his banjo, but I also play electric guitar, lap steel, and mandolin on a handful of songs. It started out as a few gigs, but You have to ask the question of what has turned into more of a full-time thing this the band wants, and what serves the past fall. song. Establish the parameters with the What’s your approach to playing bandleader. mandolin in an electric band But in a typical contemporary context? worship context, mandolin If you’re playing with electric guitars, there is most often regarded as an are two simple principles that I try to employ.
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Stillion, a 20-year veteran of worship bands, plays at Seattle’s Bethany Presbyterian Church. In his other lives he’s a husband, father, writer, editor, Webmaster, composer, and musician. Learn more than you wanted to know about Martin at www.stillion.com/martin or www.emando. com.
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FOH - Continued from page 34
system and you’re not exactly sure which wire is appropriate, consult an experienced and reputable system designer who has a track record of first-class installations similar to yours. http://www.sizes.com/materls/wire.htm Instrument Cables Instrument cables are almost always designed for unbalanced connections. They use one hot lead containing the instrument’s output signal surrounded by a braided shield, which helps absorb and diffuse electrostatic noises and RFI (radio frequency interference). Instrument cables typically utilize 1/4-inch TS phone connectors on each end. Some speaker cables look similar to instrument-level cables; however, they use two completely different types of wire and are not interchangeable. Line-Level Cables Line-level cable is designed to carry signals like those from a keyboard, guitar to a mixer or instrument amplifier. Line-level cables also connect outboard gear to the mixer or the mixer to the power amplifier or the powered monitors. Line-level cables can either be unbalanced, with a tip-sleeve connector, or balanced, using XLR or tip-ring-sleeve connectors. Microphone Cables Microphone cables typically utilize twoconductor shielded cable with XLR connectors at each end. In the professional studio, microphone cables are often used to connect line-level devices, such as mixers, effects, and power amplifiers. Devices that connect with microphone cables at line level use a balanced wiring scheme; devices that connect with regular guitar cables use an unbalanced wiring scheme. Do Cables Really Sound Different? The controversy has been brewing for years in the audio world. This excerpt of “A Spat Among Audiophiles Over High-End Speaker Wire,” by Roy Furchgott, was taken from the December 23, 1999 issue of the New York Times. In the last year, Lewis Lipnick has tested highend audio cables from 28 manufacturers. As a professional musician with the National Symphony Orchestra and as an audio consultant, he counts on his exacting ear to tell him if changing cables affects the accuracy of the sound from his $25,000 Krell amplifiers. His personal choice is a pair of speaker wires that cost $13,000. “Anyone would have to have cloth ears not to tell the difference between cables,” he said. “In my professional opinion that’s baloney,” said Alan P. Kefauver, a classically trained musician and director of the Recording Arts and Sciences program at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. “Has the wire been cryogenically frozen? Is it flat or round? It makes no difference, unless it makes you feel better.” His choice for
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speaker wire? Good-quality 16-gauge zip wire. Over the years, I’ve found myself straddling the chasm between these two philosophies. On one hand, I swear I can hear the differences between certain cables—I’ve even included examples in my books to substantiate what I’m hearing. On the other hand, I appreciate the careful and scientific approach of the objective technicians who take the stand that “If I can’t see it on my meter, it ain’t different!” My background is musical. I’ve spent the vast majority of my life performing, writing, arranging, recording, producing, and mixing music in the studio or at live shows. I care more about what it sounds like than what it looks like on a meter. However, some of the things that I hear in the tests I’ve done are pretty subtle, and it’s not always easy to tell if it’s subtly better or worse. Some of my tests have yielded substantial audible variations with the simple swapping of one cable in the setup. The ultimate purpose of an audio cable is simple: deliver the signal to the destination in exactly the same condition that it’s received at the source. Anything other than that is simply undesirable. In my mind, it always comes down to one question: Is this going to give me even a little more accuracy? If I think there’s a chance of even a slight improvement—and if I can realistically afford it—I’ll take the step. I’m a proponent of the theory that several minor improvements add up to a better final product. I also don’t like wasting money on silly things. The difference between the sound of a poorly designed and a brilliantly designed cable can be noticeable. Exactly how extreme this difference is depends on the quality and type of the source material and the system through which it’s being delivered. If a narrow-bandwidth signal composed of mid frequencies and few transients is compared on two vastly different cables, the audible differences might be minimal. However, when full-bandwidth audio rich in transient content, dimensionality, and depth is compared between a marginal and an excellent cable, there will typically be a noticeable difference in sound quality. Listen for yourself. Most pro audio dealers are happy to show off their higher-priced product. When comparing equipment, listen to some fantastic recordings, with which you are very familiar, through the gear you’re auditioning. It’s best to use high-quality audio that receives industry praise for its excellence—after all, that’s the standard you are trying to meet or beat. Right?!
For more from Bill Gibson (www.billgibsonmusic.com) about live sound and recording, check out: • The Ultimate Church Sound Operator’s Handbook: Second Edition • The Hal Leonard Recording Method (six books in the series) • Q on Producing by Quincy Jones with Bill Gibson
Worship Arts Technology Summit
Completely redesigned with all-new courses, the Worship Arts Technology Summit (WATS) is a comprehensive two-day event featuring hands-on training in audio, media, lighting, musicianship and vocals. Offering cost-effective world-class instruction from several of the largest churches and worship artists in the country, WATS takes you down a guided path with a consolidated curriculum to help you take your ministry to the next level. Don’t miss this one of a kind event!
Upcoming Locations and Dates: San Jose, California – 7/26 – 7/27 Fort Smith, Arkansas – 8/16 – 8/17 Ridgecrest, North Carolina – 9/20 – 9/21 For more information, and to register, visit www.gotowats.com.
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PERCUSSION Hi-Hat
By Mark Shelton
Cajon & Djembe: Accessorize The Groove The broad frequency range and variety of tone colors of both the cajon and djembe make these instruments great choices in a scaleddown instrumentation. Although the South American box and the West African super drum can each provide plenty of percussive power, there are methods that can add complementary sounds to a cajon or djembe-based groove without losing that intimate/reduced instrumentation vibe. Along with a sampling of accessory items to help “soup up” the groove, some patterns that incorporate peripheral gear are included for study. These models can be used in songs and might spark your creativity as you practice and analyze the parts. All the grooves are appropriate for either cajon or djembe. Shaker and Headless (Shake) Tambourine A very simple and effective way to add another layer of sound to a cajon/djembe pattern is simply playing a shaker or headless tambourine. A steady stream of eighths or sixteenths at the higher end of the frequency spectrum is a nice complement to the lower sounds from the cajon/djembe. In preparation to accompany singer-songwriter/worship leader Mark Harris, I transcribed the 6/8 Ballad Groove from Mark’s recording of “An Offering.” 6/8 Ballad Groove
Finger Shot ™ Have you ever wanted to continue a shaker part while you played an intricate two-handed djembe rhythm? Easier than growing an extra arm from your stomach, slip on a couple of Finger Shots™ from Latin Percussion and voilá!--shaker AND djembe. These miniature shakers produce sound ONLY on downstrokes, so that each downward hand movement on the djembe or cajon is doubled with a shaker sound. These little items are handy for moving from shaker to djembe, cajon, congas, or bongos without losing the shaker line. Learn the Sixteenth Rock Groove as written, and then experiment with your hands moving in a steady stream of sixteenths (activating the shaker sound) but deleting or ghosting some of the djembe/ cajon notes. Sixteenth Rock Groove
Brushes and Bundled Dowels Brushes and bundled dowels (Blasticks™, Acousticks™, Bundlz™, etc.) can be used to great effect on both cajon and djembe. The stirs and scrapes of wire or nylon brushes transfer well to the djembe and those brushes (or bundled dowels) can lay down a train groove on the cajon. Hold either implement in your non-dominant hand to play the 4/4 Ballad Groove. 4/4 Ballad Groove
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Incorporating the hi-hat into a djembe/cajon pattern will probably be an easy matter for most percussionists. Play quarters or eighth “chicks” with your foot or use your hand to strike an “open fry.” (Be careful with that hand on the cymbals!) An added bonus is the ability to utilize the slushy crash effect using your hand on the partially opened hi-hat cymbals. Players who are adept at the heel splash technique can employ that method on Hi-Hat Funk Groove and completely avoid using the hand on the open fry. Hi-Hat Funk Groove
Gajate Bracket ™ The percussion work of Richie Gajate-Garcia has been associated with the music of Phil Collins, Diana Ross, Sting, Frankie Valli, and more. Along with his achievements as a player, Richie was a collaborator with Latin Percussion in the development of the Gajate Bracket™. This device allows for mounting certain instruments so that a kick drum pedal can be used for striking. Invest in a Gajate Bracket and you can easily add cowbell, block, or tambourine while keeping both hands free for drumming. Foot Tambourine Simple but effective: the Foot Tambourine from Meinl fastens onto your foot with an elastic strap and allows you to jingle away with every tap of your toes. Capable of a fair amount of volume and easy to toss in your mallet case, the Foot Tambourine is a budget-friendly way to bring some sparkle to a djembe or cajon pattern. Mount a tambourine on a Gajate bracket or use the Foot Tambourine and accent the backbeat in this easy Foot Tamb Shuffle Groove. Foot Tamb Shuffle Groove
The suggestions in this article are but a few of the ways to expand the timbre and groove potential using outboard gear with the djembe and cajon. Invest some practice time in experimenting. A glance at whatever is on your trap table can spark your ingenuity. Perusing a percussion instrument website might get your creative juices flowing. Can that implement be held in an unconventional manner? Is there a different way to manipulate the sound of the djembe? What can enhance this basic cajon pattern? Improvise on and re-orchestrate these grooves--and make up new patterns. Get creative for the glory of God. ©2013 Mark Shelton Productions/Percussion For Worship
Mark Shelton’s experience in contemporary worship percussion is highlighted in the Gateway Create DVD series Worship Team Director, distributed by Integrity Music. His playing can be heard on the 2010 CD release from Gateway Worship God Be Praised and the 2011 recording Great Great God. An active blogger, Mark writes regularly at Percussion For Worship (www. percussionforworship.blogspot.com). Check out Mark’s percussion tutorials at www.youtube.com/marksheltonmusic
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WORSHIP TEAM TRAINING
By Branon Dempsey
I Gotta Have More Cowbell!
Undoing the Awkward Moments in Worship “I’ll be honest fellas, it was sounding great. But… I could’ve used a little more cowbell.” (Bruce Dickinson, SNL Sketch played by Christpoher Walken © 2005) If you recall this famous sketch from SNL, this has to be one of the most memorable lines. After ROFL, my initial thought was about worship teams. I watched Will Ferrel and his beer belly wiggle all over the stage clanging the cowbell. Then I shuddered. The relativity here to worship teams is quite striking. When it comes to leading songs, we do all kinds of things that can make or break a worship service. Below are three quotes from the SNL sketch to help remind us to curb the cowbell to create more worshipful connections. 1. “I mean really, explore the space!” – but don’t, be more musical “I’ll be honest.. fellas, it was sounding great. But.. I could’ve used a little more cowbell. – Gene…explore the space!” (Bruce Dickinson). Notice, Bruce didn’t say: explore the dead space. What do you do when the band stops? Everyone else is probably doing the same thing and very uncomfortable. Transitions are in the top 10 challenges of bands: how to segue the songs while retaining the worship focus. The truth is you don’t need a big band or a cowbell to accomplish this feat. Have one of the instruments play the in-betweens from one song to the next. Let’s say we’re ending one song in G and beginning the next in A. The band will hold/end on the G chord of the last song. I’ll have two other musicians cued. It can be a pianist or guitarist to begin the next song. Keeping consistent keys like G to G is good too, but not five songs in a row. Another idea is to have the drummer build into a groove. If you want a simple padded chord, let the synth keyboard or an electric guitar (chorus/reverb) cover the spot. Allow your most competent players (or you) to take more of the leading role for the transitions. Overall, don’t stop the flow of worship. Yes, silence that is intentional is very worshipful, but the
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thought here is to avoid the mishaps of also runs afoul of the Audio Engineer and unpreparedness in order to better connect team. The AE has the power to turn us the flow of worship. off and on. Work with your Audio Team, 2. “Say It Baby!” – but don’t, as they know what is best for you. On stage, I use a 60/40 rule. Singers are keep it short (talking) 60% and Band is 40%; same among the My old pastor use to say “You do the vocal section: 60% is the leader, 40% are music, I’ll do the preaching.” As much as the BGV’s. It’s not perfect, but this helps I did not like hearing this in my younger me to have a general starting point. The days, it has proven to be true and wise for band’s job is to support the singers, not me today. If awkward dead gaps don’t vice-versa. When we achieve the level of kill a service, too much talking will. So singers over band, the church can quickly then, what are some effective words to and clearly pick out the vocal melody. In say? From a leading standpoint, I usually order to better engage the church, you will have prepared or have in mind a need to think like the church. It’s not about short memorable verse. “Psalm 3.3 says, what you want to hear, it’s really about ‘In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice.’ what they need to participate. Lord, we sing to You now.” I also will say SNL’s “Cowbell” sketch is one of my a five-word prayer like: “Thank You for favorites, and serves as a good reminder your goodness.” Depending on the next for worship teams. Now that we have song, I may read out the first line. Let’s say a better sense of Space, Words and we’re doing Hosanna (Praise is Rising) Volumes, let’s lead worship! You can still by Baloche/Brown. Typically, I would use the cowbell. Just keep it at 40% ;) say “Let our praise rise to Hosanna – our Hope, our Saviour.” Remember, if your church is connected, keep it simple, not “…but do not have love, I am only a complicated. Other talking distractions resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” can come from other areas of the stage. – 1Cor 13.1b Make sure when you lead the band, Worship Team Training use hand signals to cue and not your voice. Also, keep band and singers from - Branon Dempsey talking to each other – especially if those are holding mics. The one thing I keep coming back to in leading worship is this: the Holy Spirit is the true worship leader – not me. If the church is engaged, stay out Branon Dempsey is the CEO/ Founder and Training Director of of Gods way and join them in worship. Worship Team Training® a ministry 3. I Gotta Have More Cowbell – well, not really “Guess what? I got a fever! And the only prescription.. is more cowbell!” No. Call the doctor and get some chill pills. Increasing volumes and musicians and singers who try to out-wit, out-play, and out-last each other - never win. It’s not Worship Band Survivor. As in the SNL sketch, Gene cranked up the cowbell and it was obvious. When this happens in a worship setting, we are just making noise. Read Amos 5:3, as it serves as a stark reminder of how seriously God takes his worship. Battling for stage volumes
providing live workshops and online resources for local worship ministries. Branon holds an M.Div in Worship and BM in Music Composition/Performance and is an instructor with Christian Musician Summit, a writer for Worship Musician Magazine, Shure Notes as well as other worship publications. Branon and is a Training Partner with Yamaha Corporation of America | Worship Resources and part of the Expert Panel for Shure Microphones. Worship Team Training® is sponsored by Creator Leadership Network, Christian Musician / Worship Musician Magazine / Christian Musician Summit, as well as by Line 6, D’Addario, Proclaim Church Presentation Software, iSing Worship and endorsed by Promark Drumsticks and Jim Hewett Guitars. Visit: www. WorshipTeamTraining.com Copyright 2013 Branon Dempsey | Worship Team Training® | Administered by For His Music. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. www.worshipteamtraining.com
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A FEW MOMENTS WITH…
By Jerome Daley
The New Blended
Where Skinny Jeans and Gray Hair Meet This article is a continuation of Bruce’s conversation in the Editor’s Corner piece in the May/June 13 issue entitled “Skinny Jeans Don’t Make the Worship Any More Authentic.” I have been watching the same story play out on multiple stages, but last year it became personal. As a leadership coach I was hired to help manage the transition of a megachurch’s 20-year veteran worship pastor off the stage. He had helped plant this church and was a beloved anchor in the spiritual community…but now, at age 52, he was too old to be “relevant” any more. Against his will, he traded in his keyboard for a desk. This seasoned worship pastor was given the chance to re-write his job description and pretty much do whatever he wanted in the church, so that much was generous. But he was not part of the conversation that led to him being removed from the stage of worship leadership, leadership handed instead to a young, talented but inexperienced guy with skinny jeans and a guitar.
the younger leaders. This is imperative. required for spiritual authority in Kingdom But there’s also a rub. I’d like to suggest culture. That’s where the substance comes that the crux to the conversation lies from behind the style. in distinguishing between style and Practically speaking, we can err on either substance in the quest for relevance. side. Tradition-bound churches may err Relevance is still a legitimate goal of on the side of all substance and no style, modern ministry that seeks to communicate losing relevance in the process. Leaders the good news of Jesus to a jaded world, in this system lock into the successes of communicating in language and mediums the past, and youthful initiatives may be that this culture can understand and even looked upon with suspicious reticence. appreciate. And the great danger in Progressive churches may err in their pursuing relevance is the very real risk rush to mimic the latest style—adopting of absorbing the culture of our target our culture’s infatuation with youth in the audience, absorbing their preoccupation process and sidelining the very leaders with style over substance. who possess the maturity to navigate the Everywhere we look in contemporary spiritual maze of ministry with substance.
culture (especially stage culture, which, for better or worse, is the venue that organized church occupies in America), we see a fascination and a reverence for all that is young and beautiful. “Relevance” in this ruthless playing field is measured, not in generations or in decades, but in TV seasons. Fresh and new sells by capturing our ever-shrinking attention spans; wisdom and depth of Across the country, this same story character can unconsciously become is cropping up…leading many aging passé in the flash and sizzle of young worship leaders to harbor concern guns…and our national culture is paying that their days on stage are numbered. the price of this shallowness. All style, no Should they bow out gracefully at the top substance. of their game instead of being less-thanSkinny jeans are not the threat, of gracefully removed? Do worship leaders course. The threat lies in the church being (or pastoral leaders for that matter) “age quietly commandeered by the value out” of effective stage ministry? Let’s think system embedded within our culture, about it. creating a revolving door of worship Youthful leaders bring a different kind celebrities on our church platforms. of energy than older leaders…veterans Young and beautiful, musically talented who can indeed fossilize over time if they and spiritually sincere. To be sure, they always do what they’ve always done. belong in worship ministry…and yet they And as Bruce pointed out, the older may not have developed the character, leaders are called to mentor and release experience, and leadership savvy
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Although the dilemma may seem complicated, the solution is actually pretty simple: a commitment to Kingdom values of both substance (proven character) and style (cultural relevance). How do we do that? By honoring seasoned leadership and welcoming youthful talent. By rejecting the solo-celebrity leadership model and embracing crossgenerational team leadership. This is the new “blended” worship. This is the future.
So no matter how you wear your denim—skinny or loose, neat or ratty, embroidered or plain, over boots, flips, or Toms—the cause of Christ rests upon a timeless foundation of Kingdom values that show up in a counter-culture that challenges the superficiality of this world and offers depth and substance to those desperate for something real. Jesus himself.
Jerome Daley is a leadership coach and culture consultant, author of Soul Space and six other books. A former worship pastor, Jerome speaks and partners with organizations that value a thriving culture. Request your own ThriveCheck assessment at www.iThrive9.com.
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