Members JaLester Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 I am currently a worship leader and I have a couple questions for you guys and girls that play at church. What is the most annoying thing about playing in a worship band or group at church? And is there something that your worship leader could do to make your life easier or less frustrating? I ask because I don't always want to be the last person to know that I am creating distractions or problems within the group or with individuals. I have always seemed to communicate great with the drummer, bass player, keys, electric, and etc..., but I feel that I could do more to make the group cooperate a little better with each other. Any input would be great, thanks. Oh, here is a link to our myspace page, it has music samples on it. www.myspace.com/freedombaptistband Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members melandy Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 ...but I feel that I could do more to make the group cooperate a little better with each other. This is where we had some problems a while back. There were some interpersonal issues that were causing some conflict. In addition, the drummer was there for what we felt were the wrong reasons (and was one of the "persons" in the interpersonal issues). A couple of things that I think could have been handled better would be talking to individuals privately when addressing problems, rather than in front of everyone. Some things will not really be practical to do privately (like saying that the drums are wrong for the song, or someone's not getting chord changes down, etc. that stuff you really need to address when it happens). Also, discourage gossip about problems. The walls have ears. One thing that we could have done to help bring people together is start practice sessions with prayer or a short devotional. If you don't want to or can't make up your own devo, then the Upper Room is a good source. We actually started this, but didn't stick with it. If you want to develop a camaraderie among the band members, then try to do stuff outside the setting of being a band. I am best friends with our worship leader, and also get together frequently with one of the other guitarists outside of church. We get along quite well. We still have our disagreements, conflicts & such, but we don't have much difficulty working them out. I don't know the rest of the band as well, and they are in a younger generation, but we get along fine. Things just aren't as easy as they are with the "old guys". -m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fatback Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 I'm not in a worship group but in the congregation. We have a problem with our group at the moment. They are all good musicians and they have a singer who is top notch but not in a group that is supposed to lead worship. The problem is that she sings around the melody - which is fine if the congregation knows the song - but in most cases this is not the case. So what we have is a worship group that plays at the congregation but does not lead the congregation. It might not be as flowing as some would like but what is necessary for a worship leader is to tell the congregation whats next and have at least one singer who provides the melody for the rest of us folk to follow. Often less is more. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 Our church is relatively small so our praise band doesn't have a worship leader. Instead, the music director herself leads us. The problem therein is that she's a classically-trained vocalist and most of us are self-taught folkies. As a result many of use are trying to break down sheets and sheets of musical scores into a single lyric sheet with chord diagrams and strum patterns. Things really get confusing if we have to adjust to an odd time signature, change keys in the middle or use a capo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DonK Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 So many of the vocalists are prima donnas (a sad thing in a church to be sure). I've been playing in the adult worship band for over 10 years, and I've led the middle school band for five. I see the same thing with the kids as I do with the adults: the vocalists seem to always be whining about how the key isn't right for them, or they're in a cat fight with each other over who's singing too loudly. One evening at rehearsal the vocalist who was supposed to sing the lead in what we call the "solo" (a performance song rather than a praise chorus) couldn't sing because she had a cold and her voice went out. The other regular soloist present, who was singing harmony, refused to step in because, "it wasn't her song." The worship pastor patiently explained that it was actually, "our song", and she eventually - albeit reluctantly - agreed to sing it, though you could tell she was in a snit and her heart wasn't in it. She DID ultimately do a good job with it that Sunday, though. This is an evangelical community church that does contemporary worship. Outside of the worship environment, the vocalists tend to be leader-types who are heavily involved in the church, devout and humble. We have some outstanding instrumentalists: our bass player was with James Brown at one point, and one of our electric guitar player had a CD contract with a fairly major label (I cringe at being on stage with these guys because they're just such awesome players). You'd think these former pros would be the ones with the ego issues, but it's almost always the vocalists, not sure why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WGH Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 Here's a site that's been helpful:http://www.leadworship.com/index.html I've purchased the "Worship Band Workshop" and the "Leading Worship: Creating Flow" videos and found them very worthwhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members recordingtrack1 Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 Wow, I feel pretty lucky. The worst thing I have experienced (and please be advised that it still ticks me off pretty good) is guys who plug and unplug their guitars without signalling the sound man to kill the gain. It causes a really loud and annoying POP. It probably is doing serious damage to the speakers as well. Can't seem to get that through their heads in "brotherly" way.Another slight problem is guys who want to show up at the last minute and stand there at the podium and tune their guitars. It really takes away from the magic of the whole thing. What ever happened to getting on the stick and tuning in the baptismal room first. I mean you're only talking five or six minutes early. Big babies!!!Actually we all get along pretty good and IMO, we really make some good music. It is a lot of fun and I believe that all of our musicians are there for the right reasons.RT1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigmo66 Posted October 26, 2007 Members Share Posted October 26, 2007 We are very small and rely on some young guys to help with sound and setup. We have problems getting the teens to help set up and break down equipment. They stand around looking at their text messages and pictures. For some odd reason our amps, board and cables are always messed with too. A bit irritating to the worship leader and rest of us. Kids..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 It'd be nice to have accurate charts. Some of the hymnals have abysmal charts. One major pet peeve ... chart confusion over add9, maj9, dom9, etc. Nothing worse than the Emsus2 chord. Plenty of other ridiculous chord names in those things. Of course, it's even worse when you ask the worship leader whether or not he'd like an add9 or a dom9 and the only response you get is the deer in the headlights look. I'd understand that look in a garage band ... I guess I should be more charitable to the worship leader. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guit30 Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 Friction is the most frustrating thing I have found in the praise band I play with. Actually, we reformatted and things are better, but for awhile, it was bad, the leader kept doing things to me like telling me different things at the last minute. I think you really have to put your talent behind you and Jesus in front of you to succeed and be on the same page. In the mid ninetys, I played in a praise band that was awesome, we worked out our problems, had regular practices and we prayed. It is a shame how hard playing in a worship team can be. Blessings Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Broadus Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 Please allow my two cents worth as a pastor. We constantly emphasize that the reason we gather on the Lord's day is to worship him. We do not come to receive a blessing, and we don't allow anything that will be mistaken for entertainment. Not wishing to start a debate but just explaining what we do and don't do, we do not have any applause whatsoever during worship. However well intentioned, it can confuse the uninitiated and increase the pride of believers. Frankly, my pride is too much already! We are blessed with wonderful unity and no prima donnas. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hudman Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 I was asked to join the praise group at my mother's old church several times. I seriously considered it, but didn't do it for two main reasons: One - Their PA system was pretty bad. I needed a pick up and an acoustic amp. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Two - Time. They wanted to practice 3 or 4 times a week. The church was 30 minutes from my home. I'm too busy with my kid's activities to make a committment like that. They told me I could skip practice but that didn't seem fair to the other guys, so I declined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JaLester Posted October 27, 2007 Author Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 I really do appreciate all the input, and you guys have been more than helpful with everything that has been said. Hopefully I can be a little wiser with some of my decisions and try to make things easier on the worship group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarist21 Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 I am currently a worship leader and I have a couple questions for you guys and girls that play at church. What is the most annoying thing about playing in a worship band or group at church? And is there something that your worship leader could do to make your life easier or less frustrating? I led worship at a youth group for a hundred years, so here's my two cents. One frusterating thing for many band members is when a worship leader is incapable of speaking what I call "the band language." Basically what I mean is that a worship leader (or any band leader for that matter) should be able to articulate exactly what he means to each instrumentalist. So instead of looking at the drummer and saying "Jugado babado boom!" you could say "Play an eighth-note triplet fill into the chorus" or whatever. Its probably worth it to have a pretty solid foundation in all the instruments that are in your worship band. Learn how to use the sound equipment better than the sound guys. Its just good to know. I hate bad sound guys, so eventually at the youth group I came extra early and set it all up myself and told the sound guys not to mess with the majority of what I had set up. Finally, I think a lot of worship leaders have a hard time finding a balance between the spiritual, almost right-brain aspect of worship and the musical, intellectual, left-brain aspect. This is different for everyone, but I found that I was often too intellectual for the church I led worship at, which was a little more charismatic and open to flexibilty in stuff. I wasn't trying to have a worshipful experience so much as keep the band from sucking. Without getting too religious here, I worship in other ways, you know? So I don't necessarily have any advice to give on this but to be aware that people feed off your energy and if you're stoic and intellectual, some people won't feel as led to worship. Sorry this is so long!! Take it for what its worth. Ellen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members recordingtrack1 Posted October 27, 2007 Members Share Posted October 27, 2007 I led worship at a youth group for a hundred years, so here's my two cents.One frusterating thing for many band members is when a worship leader is incapable of speaking what I call "the band language." Basically what I mean is that a worship leader (or any band leader for that matter) should be able to articulate exactly what he means to each instrumentalist. So instead of looking at the drummer and saying "Jugado babado boom!" you could say "Play an eighth-note triplet fill into the chorus" or whatever. Its probably worth it to have a pretty solid foundation in all the instruments that are in your worship band.Learn how to use the sound equipment better than the sound guys. Its just good to know. I hate bad sound guys, so eventually at the youth group I came extra early and set it all up myself and told the sound guys not to mess with the majority of what I had set up.Finally, I think a lot of worship leaders have a hard time finding a balance between the spiritual, almost right-brain aspect of worship and the musical, intellectual, left-brain aspect. This is different for everyone, but I found that I was often too intellectual for the church I led worship at, which was a little more charismatic and open to flexibilty in stuff. I wasn't trying to have a worshipful experience so much as keep the band from sucking. Without getting too religious here, I worship in other ways, you know? So I don't necessarily have any advice to give on this but to be aware that people feed off your energy and if you're stoic and intellectual, some people won't feel as led to worship.Sorry this is so long!! Take it for what its worth.Ellen Well said E, I have to agree wholeheartedly with you. One thing though, I really like that "jugado babado boom" lick. It works well in a lot of songs. RT1:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members basschick22 Posted October 28, 2007 Members Share Posted October 28, 2007 One frusterating thing for many band members is when a worship leader is incapable of speaking what I call "the band language." Basically what I mean is that a worship leader (or any band leader for that matter) should be able to articulate exactly what he means to each instrumentalist. So instead of looking at the drummer and saying "Jugado babado boom!" you could say "Play an eighth-note triplet fill into the chorus" or whatever. Ellen This is a big reason why I quit playing at church. The worship leader would get frustrated with something a band member would play, and instead of communicating as one educated musician to another, she would say "play more like *insert band here*" Now, if the entire band doesn't listen to the exact same bands the worship leader listens to, they have no clue in which direction they need to go. Hardly helpful and very distracting to the worship experience. Also, this same worship leader would give us lead charts at rehearsal on Wednesday, from which we'd rehearse. Then, Sunday morning would come around and we'd have "revised" charts. That was very frustrating...what was the point of our hour and a half practice on Wednesday? She would also call me up and try to sway me to "her side" when it came to asking the guitar player or the drummer to 'tone it down'. That wasn't my place and I sure didn't like the 'gossip' that went on when someone wasn't around. I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to play bass at church, and i did it for about 2 and a half years before I quit. The politics and these other distractions just spoiled the worship experience for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Fade2Grey Posted October 29, 2007 Members Share Posted October 29, 2007 I personally hate church musicians who refuse to grow up and learn. If we encounter something difficult or something really different, they'll just say that they won't do it... excuse:" Oh, i'm just an amatuer." Well, GROW UP and learn new things. They seem to think that being "sufficient" in a worship band is good enough, they don't seem to think that God deserves excellence. Having said that, I do understand that everyone will have limits to their ability, etc etc and I can appreciate that. But the least they can do is TRY, not just stop and do nothing about it... I also have a personal peeve about worship leaders who don't lead worship. They are 'just' lead singers; they sing the song, tell us what to play next (chorus, verse, etc) but don't give any sort of indication to the congregation on "where to head" (or which stream to drink from )...Also, some classically-trained pianist are EXTREMELY difficult to deal with. They seem to think that they are playing alright in the band but in fact, they are playing solo piano in an ensemble context, just poor form really. :poke:Those are the negs. Tips, I have one big one: Always give the occasional smile to your bandmates when you're playing, lightens up the mood. This is especially encouraging when you smile to acknowledge when they just did something REALLY good (eg, good solo, nice change of beat/rhythm, great fill, etc)... While practicing, and ONLY while practicing, be prepared to give criticism and be ready to RECEIVE criticism. Mature musicians who gives boths improve way faster that way. Am I sounding like and arse yet? Sorry if I am... Just starting to get jaded with the whole worship 'thing'... Anyway, that's my 2 cents.For what it's worth, i've been involved with worship since my teens and i'm well into my 20's now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted October 29, 2007 Members Share Posted October 29, 2007 I guess I have two pet peeves: First, our "praise team" doesn't spend anywhere near enough time practicing together. We spend maybe 5-10 minutes maximum running over the songs before worship but that's it. Our organist/choir director picks the songs and plays piano during praise. She usually makes sure I have the music in advance so I can practice on my own but that's not the same as playing with the group. Second, I feel like I'm kinda "tacked on" to the team. Some of you will recall that it took a while for me to get a mike for my guitar and I finally had to install a transducer and borrow an amp. I was using what had been the "guitar mike" for vocals but that changed: Our two main vocalists are an alto and a soprano, but the soprano doesn't sing very loud and she tends to stand further from the mike they share than the alto does. Our organist/choir director decided to start singing soprano to balance the sound but we only have the two mikes so guess who doesn't have one any more. I'm supposed to stand off to the side on the other side of the piano from the two vocalists so I can't share their mike. I know we only have so many mikes but I feel left out sometimes. My advice would be to make sure everyone is included in the praise team/band and that they spend enough time practicing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dan Hall Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 Our team is a mess at the moment. For a variety of reasons our former Worship Leader has left. We have a former Nashville session man turned seminarian on bass, an assistant professor of music (jazz) at UC Berkeley on piano, numerous pretty good vocalists from the congregation and no direction what so ever. I don't know where they are going but it looks towards all acoustic with the exception of the bass player. We had a large, talented ensemble with a couple of electric guitars, two percussionists and a very balanced if loud sound. For some of the members though, it was about just another gig rather than about glorifying God. These were asked to leave. We are now rebuilding. The single most annoying problem though is the lead vocalists not carrying the tune. That's been mentioned. I hold down two or three rows of seats with my very loud baritone though. I was on the verge of joining the team and working with the old worship leader to get the reperatory down when whatever happened happened. There is more going on in church politics than I ever want to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MattSkibaIsGOD Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 For those of you who play at church, is the music as important as the worship? Or More? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarist21 Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 For those of you who play at church, is the music as important as the worship? Or More? The music is the worship for many people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 The music is the worship for many people. I don't see any problem with that. Not to get all metaphysical but music is the universal language. I imagine that there's lots of music up in heaven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Broadus Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 The entire service is worship, whether it be vocal singing, instrumental, praying, preaching, or giving. And the purpose of all is the glory of God, else it is performance and not worship. That means that we do all to the best of our ability and with the best preparation. We don't want to distract from worship with unpreparedness and haphazardness, whether it be music or preaching. This videoed service of Parkside Church in the Cleveland, Ohio, area is a good example of what I'm talking about. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 The entire service is worship, whether it be vocal singing, instrumental, praying, preaching, or giving. And the purpose of all is the glory of God, else it is performance and not worship. That means that we do all to the best of our ability and with the best preparation. We don't want to distract from worship with unpreparedness and haphazardness, whether it be music or preaching.This videoed service of Parkside Church in the Cleveland, Ohio, area is a good example of what I'm talking about.Bill True - the message is what is important. I wish our praise service were as well-received or half as polished as that one is, but I seriously doubt that it's going to last much longer in my church. It doesn't seem to have a place with our congregation's sensibilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OldGuitarPlayer Posted October 30, 2007 Members Share Posted October 30, 2007 This videoed service of Parkside Church in the Cleveland, Ohio, area is a good example of what I'm talking about. Bill Now... this is what I'm talkin' about http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qh-8VK5i0jw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.