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Why would you want to play in a church group???


stormin1155

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First of all, this is not about religion.  This is about church as a venue for playing music.  I've been playing in a praise/worship group for the past four years, and not only have I had a blast doing it, it has helped me grow as a guitarist and musician.

 

If you don't want to have anything to do with church or religion, then what I'm about to say probably won't interest you.  But since 84% of the US population claims some religious affiliation it could apply to a lot of you.  So here are several reasons why you might want to consider playing in a church group.

 

1.  LOTS of opportunities to play -Your best way to improve as a guitarist and musician is to play with other people and in front of other people.  On any given weekend the number of churches having live music outnumbers all other types of venues by a huge margin.  Small churches in particular are always looking for musicians.  In addition to church services, our group also does occasional outreach gigs for youth groups, community events, and the like.  Some churches pay their musicians. Most don't.

 

2.  Opportunity to learn from and teach others - In most church groups the range of musicians can range from beginners to professional level.  In larger churches there is often a rotation of musicians, so you could have the opportunity to play with a lot of different musicians.  Some you can learn from, some can learn from you.  Most of the music isn't real difficult, so even those with modest levels of proficiency can play it.

 

3.  Appreciative audiences - Smaller churches in particular are appreciative and non-critical of musician's level of talent, so it can be a low-stress way of getting in front of an audience.  Where else could a hack player like me play to an audience who are all singing along, waving their arms, dancing in the isles, and on their knees weeping?

 

4.   Wide range of musical styles - Our group plays five or six songs each week, and they range from hard rock, to Christian "pop," to syrupy ballads, to gospel, to traditional hymns. You may not like all the music you play, but it is great experience to learn new styles.  For instance I don't like playing traditional hymns.  They aren't written for guitar, and are often in odd keys or unfamiliar modes.  So you learn.  Same with gospel.  Most of it is painfully simple, so you have to get creative to make it interesting.

 

5.   Good equipment - Many churches have professional level sound equipment and trained sound technicians.  I play in a very small church, yet our sound system is better than 90% of bars that have live music.  Larger churches have state-of-the-art sound systems and recording capabilities.

 

6.   It's FUN!

 

So there you go...  Those of you who are playing in a church group, please chime in with your experience.

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I never have, but in my church-going days I had opportunity to but never pursued it because they never rehearsed. I heard from people in other churches that this is very common. Huge turn-off. Nowadays, I just have no interest in church at all.

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Getting up early on my day off after getting home from a real gig at midnight or later the night before, putting on pants, playing songs I don't like, for no money, with amatures, in front of people who can't tell if it is any good or not, and having to listen to a sermon. Sounds great. Really. I mean it.

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I've played in our worship band for 15 years. Everything the OP says is true. We rehearse every other week (vocalists every week). We also use an online service where music and mp3s for every song are posted. I don't make many rehearsals because of my teaching schedule, so the online Planning Center is a life saver. The director trusts me enough that I can do my own thing in terms of electric guitar arrangements. I'm able to do what I do best rather than just copy the original artist. Our band is tight--lots of talent ( present company excepted), and noticeable mistakes are few and far between these days. We poll our visitors and music is consistently mentioned as the strongest part of our service, but it didn't come easily. It took may years of work, but it has come together nicely.

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I played in a few P&W bands/groups. One was a monthly casual thing. Three other guitarists would show and a pianist. I would usually bring my bass and have a blast.

 

I brought my guitar to the first one I attended and was nervous. As we started practicing and reviewing songs (we'd do a practice session a few days before the monthly thing in front f an audience) - anyways, I was new to this stuff, and asked "uh, say, how are you playing that D7b4sus9 chord?" His reply put me at ease for the next 3 years: "Who knows, I just play the D chord!" Hahaha. I was so nervous to get everything "perfect" it never occurred to me that the other guys were just winging it half the time!

 

Week after week, we'd each figure out one chord and show each other "oh cool - that sounds much nicer! I've been playing it wrong for years!" and we would both improve. I learned a lot, and got a lot of group playing and audience playing experience. You can be the most technically talented player alive, but if you can't play in time, and adjust on the fly for group mistakes "ok, I guess we're skipping the bridge!", and can't play without a "reset" button ("wait, let me start that phrase over...") - you just aren't a good well rounded musician. (Sitting in your room playing scales all day will only get you so far.)

 

 

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ashtray wrote:

 

. . . I was new to this stuff, and asked "uh, say, how are you playing that D7b4sus9 chord?" His reply put me at ease for the next 3 years: "Who knows, I just play the D chord!" Hahaha. I was so nervous to get everything "perfect" it never occurred to me that the other guys were just winging it half the time! . . .

 


 

I played in a Christian group for two years in college and I've been in the "praise band" at church for several years. I enjoy playing (usually guitar) and if we didn't have a drummer who refuses to play without a bass, I might have never learned to play bass. On top of everything else, since ours is a small church I get to be "a big fish in a small pond" in the sense that I have an outlet for my original stuff that I wouldn't have in a big church. We practice every couple of Saturdays and before worship. And yes, there's a certain amount of "winging it" but everyone has fun. Psalms 66:1, 95:1 & 2, 98:4 & 6, and 100:1 all refer to making "a joyful noise". Nothing about music. The point (to me, anyway) is to have fun and praise God.

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Religion and politics. Gets you every time.

 

I grew up in churches. I have studied religions in-depth, and I am easily more scholarly on the subject than many (dare I say most) pastors, nevermind average churchgoers. I don't attend church anymore, and I don't play in those types of bands for my own reasons, those of which are unnecessary for this thread. But I'll comment further.

 

Playing in these groups does make you a better player, even if you're in a terrible band. From different genres to playing music written for other instruments on your guitar, you learn to stretch. If you don't mind the church part, then yeah, it can be a lot of fun. You get to play a weekly gig.

 

And another positive point to mention is how those people are keeping the music business going. I'm sure a music store employee can tell you that in many areas (especially the South) a lot of sales come from outfitting churches with music gear. We regularly get threads from guys wondering what gear to use for their church gigs. Makes a difference in the business, I think.

 

And for those precious few churches that pay their musicians - a gig is a gig, and a job is a job.

 

It would be nice if there was a similar opportunity for non-religious people.

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A few weeks back, I posted a letter that was published in Guitar Player asking the editors to devote more space to guitarists who play in worship bands. The editor acknowledged that it represents a large number of players and promised that GP would devote more coverage.

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photon9 wrote:

 

IMO if Jesus were alive today and was in a band he would be playing the grimiest bars in the most ghetto parts of town at 3am.

 

 

But the booze there would be freakin' awesome! :robotwink:

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For me, it's a privilege and an honor to use my God-given talents to praise and honor my Maker. But it's also as natural as falling off a log for me. Everything I do is in praise and honor of Him with the sincerest hope that I am listening to His directions at all times.

 

BTW - I am certainly not afraid to die. Never have been. Never will be. With or without God, dying is simply a fact. Hope not to go painfully but I do fully expect to go. :)

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OP here....  I appreciate the sincere comments from those who contributed with their experiences and thoughts.  And I don't mind people disagreeing.  I said at the start that church bands aren't for everyone.

What I do find sad is that some folks think that it is OK to hijack a thread with their intolerance and disrespect by attacking those who believe differently than them.  There are a lot of places on the internet where it is OK to do that.  This isn't it.  This thread is intended as a forum to discuss improving as a guitarist and musician, and playing in a church band is one path to consider.

Can you talk about church bands without bringing religion into it?  I don't see why not.  We talk about playing in bars without bringing alcohol abuse into the discussion and things turning ugly.  Of course religion is part of playing at church, but it isn't the part we are discussing here.

I know a lot of you don't believe in God and a lot of you have had bad experiences with religion.  I've had some  bad experiences with religion too.  But whatever issues or beliefs you have are your deal, and this is not the place to project them onto others who believe differently.  So if you can't handle a discussion about playing in a church group without getting sarcastic, abraisive, disrespectful, and ugly over it, please leave and allow the rest of use to have a civil and productive discussion.

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Some things that are annoying about church bands (without knocking religion)

 

Rotating rosters - lots of churches do this to keep more people involved, but it can really be annoying, especially for those who like to lock in with their band and stay tight. Of course, this constant adjustment makes you more flexible as a musician.

 

Singers - most churches have a lead vocalist plus three to five backing vocalists. Finding your place in a mix of all those shouting vocals is tough (and not just a job for the soundman). Given that church music is supposed to be all about the vocals and the easy singalongs, it can be frustrating to a musician to get buried so often. Not that there aren't moments for spotlight, but you know. I've also worked with lots of singers, and their lack of understanding for the non-vocal facets of music can be frustrating. In "regular" bands, you normally just deal with one singer - church bands always have more!

 

Sound guys - This was listed as a plus, I think, but the average church sound guy is a volunteer that is just learning as they go. They're usually nice people willing to do a tough job for free, but damn if they aren't annoying when they don't know how to deal with feedback, monitors, or all the other things that are usually associated with being a sound man.

 

Repetitive songs - nevermind the lyrics. You're in church, and the lyrics are supposed to be like they are. But the enless repeated choruses can be a drag, and when you can play the same progression to the same rhythm for a whole set and play through 6 different songs, you can get a little tired. It's the talented bands that make it sound like you're not playing the same thing for every song, but then there are still the endless repeats. Now I realize that's for the congregation, and that's related to religion (which I'm avoiding) but as a musician, that can get on your nerves.

 

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I've played in many secular pro band. For over 30 years, probably done close to 6000 gigs. I've played in cover bands, I've plsid in original bands, country bands, rock bands, dance bands, funk, metal, you name it.

 

I have also played in church bands , and spent four years playing violin in one particular orchestra at church. We had seventy musicians in that orchestra and 100 people in the

quior, full pipe organ with a whole wall of pipes that would rattle your bones and when that whole orchestra fired up, it would make the hairs on the back of your necj stand up.

 

That is despite some of tge absolute most atrocious horible

excuses for "musicians" that were in that orchestra. That church would let ANYONE play in that orchestra and it seemed tge only requirement to being considered a "musician" and getting in the orchestra was that you owned the instrument. The absolute worst musicians I've ever played

 

with in my life were in church orchestras and those really badvones, and there was no shortage of them would never EVER be asked to play a second song if tgey somehow managed to find their way into any of the secular band I have played in. I have heard violins sound like screaming cats on fire, I've heard french horns sound like dying moose, these

 

 

 

sounds would be AWESOME if these people were being hired to make noises to scare crows away, or to torture terrorists for info, but no problem, please come join our orchestra

Thank GOD that we had ebough really talented musicians in thst orchestra, many pro active and retired symphony

 

 

musicians that could cover up and sort of hide the horrible ones that the whole effect was still pretty awesome, especially if our pianist, a world renowned Bach scholar was playing, and the sheer volume of the quoir could fix almost anything.

 

Here is the part I have to tell you, I LOVED and hated playing in that orchestra, loved playing my part in a large organization lije that, loved the challenge of being handed new music each sunday morning, and cold real time sight reading performing

pieces I had never even seen or hesrd until 30 seconds ago. You got REAL good at. sight reading, I loved playing in musical situations with people young and old, from all walks of life that my path would almost certainly never cross with in the secular pro music world.

But I hated playing with the non musicians that were so bad they should have been arrested for impersonatiing musicians. I spent my whole life really working and trying to develop as a musician, always seeking out or being invited to play with

 

really awesome musicians and ALL the pro bands I've played in my whole life were good if not great. Sorry if that sounds horribly arrogant. I love playing with great musicians and the challenge of playingvin great bands. If a band is not already great, or a new band isn't potentially great right off the bat, I

just move on. Point is, I pride myself on having the bands Im in really kick ass. So it was really tough sometimes playing in that orchestra, faithfully doing my part, on my right is a world class retired New York Philharmonic retired pro symphony musician, my violiin teacher who taught at Julliard and was

envited into the New York Symphony in 1941 as a full

 

member at age 16, and who had one of the sweetest and most professional, artful soulful tones I've ever heard on violin, as good as any of the masters, and on my right was a completely tone deaf, completely rythmically unaware sweet old lady that. Couldnt milk a tone recognizable as eben remotely musical if you paid her 1, 000, 000 bucks, much less be able to do anything other than just musically smear {censored} all over the entire orchestra. I loved that old lady. But she had about as much businesd performing live music as any of the "singing" dogs we see on youtube all the time. It made my skin crawl and I wanted to smash her violin just to put it out of its misery. Sorry if that makes me an asshole, but willfully playing in a band with someone like that went against everything I had known as a musician of decades of striving for the opposite of that.

 

What really kept me interested in that orchestea qas that it was making me a decent violin player classical theory training and sight reading got really good, but me and seven or eight of the other musicians in the orchestra, tge ones I thought were awesome, started putting together side projects both at church and we got plenty of professional work secularly.

 

Some of the things we did were quite awesome but despite the congregation and staff really enjoying what we were doing in some of those smaller groups, we were ridiculed, even despised in some cases by many of the members of the regular orchestra. It wasn't only the horrible musicians that did that, even some people I thought were good, were nice and were my friends began to ridicule. We did some really musically impressive things, all with the absolute blessing and delight of the staff and congregation, but the negetive ones in that orchestra were down right NASTY people and were far worse as far as back stabbing, rumor starting, gossiping, judgeing, ridiculing, jellous people that I EVER had worked with or even considered working with outside of church in a profesdional situation.

 

Some of my favorite musicsl moments have happened in church musical situations, but a disproportionately HUGE percentage of some of my worst musical memories happened in church.

 

Many of the church groups I've played in or even seen, will let absolutely ANYONE with an instrument into the group. Some of these people would be in actual jeaopardy of physical injury if they were in a bar because people would want to harm them just to ger the noise to stop.

 

So, that is pretty much my experience. You can repeat the story or similarities to it with about seven or eight church situations I've been involved with.

 

There are many great things I have gotten out of playing with church groups.

 

But there are also many many many musical attrocities ans crimes against music that simply wouldnt even exist in the secular professional, playing for money world where you at least have to be good or you don't get asked back.

 

The question is to what extent you can tolerate the bad that inherently exists in church musical situations in order to enjoy the good that can be found there.

 

I haven't playe in a church group for about five years now, not that I wouldnt, or won't ever again, but I'm just to busy. I've. Done an average of four or five gigs a weekend, usually thurs. through sun. for five years straight with three or four bands I work with now. Its kinda hard to go commit to a church group playing for free, or even for money, when you have a good band with good gigs in fun places willing to pay you week after week.

 

Buif you are playibg in a church orchestra or band and are enjoying yourself then that is all that matters 

Just don't fool yourself into believing that possibly at least some of the people you are there playing with are only there becuause they wouldnt have a chance outside of a church to even play in front of people.

 

Does all this make me sound like an asshole?

 

Yeah, I'm pretty sure it does.

 

Buit is my experience and well, op asked so there it is. 

 

Besides, always felt like I was in the edge of bursting into flames at any second in church anyway.

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Some very good points Dave and kayd.  Yes, there are things that are frusterating about church bands, and you hit on several.  Some of those things you can learn from and grow, others you just endure.   And no, you don't sound like an asshole.  That is your experience, and you have a lot more experience than most of us.  Thank you for sharing your experience in a respectful way.

One thing you said I'd like to  comment on, and that is the interplay between the singers and instrumentalists. Our lead singer/worship leader likes to drag songs out, does a lot of talking and interacting with the congregaton, which means that we have to back way off, and it does get repetitive... We have to hold it low, then when he decides,we are to bring it back up again at the point in the song that we don't know until he starts singing.  None of this is rehearsed, so it means we really have to be paying attention to him, because he is usually not paying attention to us or giving us any signals.  Can be frusterating, but it is a good learning experience.

Also your comment about sound guys is probably more the rule than the exception.  Our sound guy.... well, let's just say he means well.  He has a DJ company, so he thinks he's somewhat an expert, but isn't.  I can be playing along and suddenly I drop completely out of the mix.  When I try to signal him he has his headphones on, is singing along, and looking at the board.

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@stormin1155

 

The whole follow-the-freestyling-leader thing is one of the best learning experiences you can have, and it's the most prominent in these church bands. I once played with a gospel group - really good musicians all-around. In rehearsal, he gave me the key of the song and a few of the changes. Come performance time, he throws in key changes, breakdowns, unexpected tags, everything. I hung with them the whole time, and it was cool. I probably wouldn't habe been able to do that, had I not had a lot of experience following songleaders while in front of an audience. I've done it in a band, as well as being the sole accompaniment. This sort of thing helps a lot if you want to play in a jam band.

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I'm a full time guitar teacher i'm also an athiest i regularily teach students who are church goers and i allways reccomend they get involved with there church bands. I've even gone to church to assist them with setting up there rigs and getting the right sound. And i've gone to rehearsals to listen and give advice and it's no different to any other band rehearsal we discuss the music and we discuss equipment. My advice to all my students is to play with other musicians and if they are members of a church that offers them that oppertunity then i support them.

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