i am an offering

This week I’d love to spend some time diving into some more practical music theory tips that you can use in your worship ministry (or in any modern musical venue for that matter).  Very often I will run into bass players that know where the root notes of chords are but have no idea what to do beyond playing the root note.  Today we’ll try and look at some simple tips bass players can use to get off of the root:

Listen - learn - play.

The absolute best way for bass players to find their way out of the familiar root note is to listen to recordings and pick out the bass part.  Crank the bass on your EQ and pick out everything the bass player is doing.  Attempt to play along with the song (you might have to pause quite a few times!) and learn what notes the bass player is using.  Start with a slower song with a less intricate bass line to avoid a lot of frustration.

Fifths and Fourths

These two intervals are very key to making bass playing a little more interesting while keeping it simple.  Because the root chord is built up of a root, a third, and a fifth - the fifth of the chord can be used to add interest.  Alternate between the root and the fifth in rhythm with the rest of the song.  It doesn’t have to be fancy right away.  If you’ve never tried to get off of the root note before, play the root note for three beats (if you’re in a 4/4 song) and then use the fourth beat to switch to the fifth of the chord.  Then, on the first beat of the next measure, come back to the root note.  By playing the fifth on the last beat of the measure you create a great transition note into the next measure.

Knowing where the fourth of the chord is can be very helpful in adding a note that transitions to the fifth.  It could be a quick transition that helps create a rhythmic, punching bass line.  Or it could be a transition from one chord to the next.  If the music goes from a I chord to a V chord, use the fourth to transition between the two.

Thirds

In the same way, use thirds to transition to a knew chord.  The third note of a I chord helps transition perfectly to the first note of a IV chord.  Use the third note of the IV chord to transition to the root note of the V chord (take note that you will be going down instead of up in this case.)  The third note of the V chord has to transtion back to the first note of the I chord.  Use the third of every chord to find your way either up or down to the next chord in the song.

Rhythm

If you absolutely have a hard time getting away from the root of the chord - use rhythm to help create more interest.  For a driving song, play repeated eighth notes instead of whole notes.  Repeat the root as a separate note on the fourth beat of the measure (in 4/4) and then repeat it again on the first beat of the next measure.  This helps create movement in the music.

These are some very basic tips that will help beginning bass players move away from the root note of each chord and create much more interest in the music.  Anyone have any more?

For a long time I’ve subscribed to the school of thought that playing by chord off of lead sheets or chord sheets is a much better way to go for piano players than playing straight from the actual piano music.  You only have to have a couple of pages to turn through, you learn how to play chords just in case the piano music is unavailable, and you develop your ear.  However, there is a problem:  it’s much harder to lead if you don’t have experience.

Without Rhythm and Melody - Chords Don’t Go Anywhere

As I’ve begun to teach several piano players how to play by chords instead of by the piano music I’ve run into a problem that I completely didn’t expect.  Chords, without being driven by rhythm and melody, don’t really go anywhere.  I can tell the piano player to “just play by the chords on this one” and it leads to a great fit when I’m leading from the guitar.  I can carry the rhythm from the guitar and let the piano color and accent the song.  But if I say, “I’d like to you lead this one on the piano,” many of the piano players are not quite sure what to do.  They can play the chords, but haven’t really been taught the rhythms to apply the chords to - so the song lacks movement.  They can play the chords, but haven’t really been taught how to break them up and use passing tones to create interest - so the song lacks character.

What to Do?

I guess that is my dilemma.  I can show the piano players what to do by saying, “Let me sit for a second and show you what I’d like.”  But then they’re just watching me do something instead of actually learning how to do it.  I would love to know what you’ve done to teach piano players how to play chords but play them rhythmically and melodically - able to lead a song well.  Some things I can think of might perhaps be:

• Writing out piano parts for them for a while - then saying, “Okay - your turn to apply it - make up your own now.”
• Having a workshop with piano players on how to do these things - which is something I’d like to do - I just lack the time at the moment.
• Have the piano players listen and watch professionals to try and develop their ear and mimic what the professionals are doing
• Create an online youtube / vimeo video to help train - another thing I’d love to do - again with a lack of time

Are there any other suggestions that could help?

One thing I should have mentioned at the beginning of the week, to do in all of these cases is pray.  Pray for these players to show up.  God will provide.

Here are some ideas for what to do when you don’t have a guitar player:

• Ask your youth leader.  More than likely one of the youth is learning how to play.  Invest time in that youth.  See if the church will help you financially invest in getting lessons for the youth.
• Teach your piano player to play rhythmically.  Often times piano players play only by note and play way too many notes.  Teach them to drive the music with the chords instead of the notes.  There are times when many notes are important, but with the faster songs that you would want a guitarist for, the piano player can drive the rhythm if taught how to do it.
• Don’t pick guitar-driven songs.  Songs such as “God of Wonders” and “Everlasting God” have a very distinct sound that is created by a specific strumming pattern from the guitar.  Avoid picking songs that have a definite and prominent guitar strum.  It is nearly impossible to re-create certain guitar strums on the piano.

Continuing with our thoughts on what to do when you’re missing certain instruments, what happens when you have no drummer? Here are some ideas:

• As I mentioned yesterday, the drums and bass carry the groove of the music.  If you have a bass player, teach that person to play very rhthmically and to be able to create a groove without a drummer.  If you have no bass player, teach the instruments you do have to create a groove and play tightly together.  Teach people how to play with steady tempos and practice it all the time!
• Use drum loops.  You can purchase a loop generator at a music store.  While these will not give the personality and creativity as a real drummer (as they are a set pattern that repeats over and over) they can still be very effective in creating a bit of extra rhythm to drive the music.  Be careful, though because in order to play with drum loops your steady tempos have to be very good.
• Use percussion.  Tambourines, shakers, congas, and bongos and djembe can add a lot of color and rhythm and aren’t too difficult to play.  Make sure you do some research on how to play them correctly so you can teach people how to play them and be sure you know how to care for these instruments as well.  Sometimes there can be nothing worse than someone playing the tambourine or congas who doesn’t know how.
• Use percussion.  Yes I just repeated myself.  Perhaps you have a drummer in your congregation, but either your church doesn’t want you to use a full kit or the drummer can’t haul the kit back and forth all the time.  Good drummers are good percussionists as well and will know how to play the more easily-transportable instruments.  Pastor Wade said yesterday, “The djembe is the most important percussion instrument in God’s kingdom.”  He was half-joking, but I think he’s got a great point.  The djembe is probably one of the most versatile, least expensive percussion instruments you can find.  Invest in one.  Don’t just invest money though, invest time in learning how to play it and how to teach it.
• Teach your guitarists to play very rhythmically and drive the rhythm.
• Be okay with not having a drummer.  Use it as an opportunity to use piano-driven, intimate songs and teach people to worship intimately.

At the FLY Convention, I was privileged to teach an elective on leading worship. Many people who attended were from churches with no established “contemporary” services (I’m not a huge fan of that word, more on that another time.)

We all want to build up our worship teams to full bands someday, but most of the time that tends to be difficult, especially if you are in a small church or city with limited resources. I want to spend the rest of the week talking about what to do if you’re missing an instrument that can help you fill in the hole without worrying about finding someone to play that instrument right away. So let’s start with the bass, or rather, the lack of bass.

• Almost everyone has another piano player in the congregation. Find a keyboard that can simulate a bass sound and have another pianist playing the bass part on the keyboard.
• If you only have one piano player, and/or no budget to get a keyboard, teach the piano player how to play the bass notes in the chords. Often times you will see something like D/F# on a chord or lead sheet. This simply means that you play a D chord with your right hand (D-F#-A) and play an F# on the bottom with your left hand. These subtle changes in the chord will make the music sound much more interesting.
• Perhaps you have an overabundance of guitar players. Teach one of them how to play the bass. It usually doesn’t take them too long.
• The bass (and drums) usually carry the groove, or rhythm, of the song. Teach the instruments you have to know how to work together to create groove and tight rhythm before the bass player gets there.
• To think completely outside the box…perhaps you have a great bass singer - he could sing the bass part. Think “Tonic Sol Fa” or “Go Fish.” in the early days. (By the way, the original bass singer of Go Fish is in Tonic Sol Fa now)
• See if there are any other bass players in your area that hold similar beliefs and principles as you do and ask if they would be willing to fill in while you keep looking for your own.

Hopefully these suggestions can help you as you continue to search.