by Don Chapman
part 1 | part 2
I was talking to a worship leader about his
music. He couldn't put his finger on it but
there was something wrong. It just didn't
sound right. Not contemporary enough or something.
Looking at his set list,
I figured he was
probably trying to do contemporary
worship
with golden oldies like
"He Is Exalted"
and "I Love You, Lord."
I was shocked
to see he was doing current
worship hits
from Hillsong United and
Lincoln Brewster.
"You're doing all
the current songs,
what's wrong?" I asked.
He just couldn't
articulate the problem.
After I visited his rehearsal,
I heard the
problem: 40 and 50 year
olds trying to play
music written by 20 year
olds with synth
patches and guitar effects
from the 80's.
They were playing modern
songs in an old-fashioned
way and it just didn't
sound right.
Over six years ago when
I started WorshipIdeas.com
the main question churches
had was "how
do I start doing contemporary
worship?"
Most churches were in transition
from traditional
to contemporary.
In 2008, the vast majority
of churches have
made the transition. People
who come to my
worship conference classes
reflect this.
They no longer are wanting
to know HOW to
transition from traditional
to contemporary,
they want to know how to
DO contemporary.
For instance, at my worship
leader friend's
rehearsal was a mid 40's
guitarist who had
the cheesiest 80's chorus
and reverb on his
guitar. He still thought
that was cool, and
it was back in the 80's.
It just doesn't
work on a modern worship
tune.
As a keyboardist, I grumblingly admit that
guitars are where it's at in the current
worship style (in a few years things will
probably shift back to keyboards - it's all
a big cycle.) This is a big issue. Guitars
are vitally important to your sound. I'm
amazed at how much my HymnCharts arrangements
change when my guitarist friend Adam Fisher
lays down some guitar tracks.
So what do you do with
an out of touch guitarist?
Option 1: You keep the
guy in your band and
settle for music that doesn't
sound right.
Nobody's feelings get hurt.
You probably
won't attract many people
under 30 to the
church as they are so tuned
into music, and
you probably won't get
modern players in
your band, either. In fact,
the pastor of
the aforementioned church
was frustrated
that most of the congregation
were over 40.
Option 2: You kick the
guy out of the band
and find a 25 year old
to take his place.
Maybe there's a 3rd option
where the ball
is in the court of the
mid 40s guitarist.
Kindly explain that you
would like him to
play the guitar EXACTLY
as he hears it on
the recording. He may not
even own the proper
pedals: if budget allows,
buy the proper
pedals or borrow them.
Once he has the pedals,
he may not know how to
use them: show him
how, and if you don't know,
find someone
who does. Partner with
a local music store
and have a modern guitar
workshop for your
praise band. Make every
effort to equip those
in your ministry. It wouldn't
hurt to find
a 25 year old modern guitarist
anyway and
have him share the stage
with the 40 year
old.
It's all about change,
and we worship leaders,
of all people, know how
people luvvv to change,
don't we! If the 40s guitarist
is willing
to grow, learn and change
he'll continue
to be a valued member of
the praise band.
If he stubbornly refuses,
maybe it's time
to look for a new player.
part 1 | part 2
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